In his first interview after quitting the Congress, Patidar leader Hardik Patel spoke to The Indian Express about the deeper problems in the grand old party and why joining the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) could be a likely option.
Praising the saffron party, Patel said that the people of Gujarat “see the BJP as bringing development, peace and security. The people of Gujarat have understood that there is peace and security in the BJP regime because before that they saw riots. They have seen that in the last 20-22 years, nothing has happened.”
Claiming that 2022 Gujarat Assembly elections will be “one-sided,” thereby not “interesting,” Patel took a jibe at the Congress while hailing Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP’s) strategy.
Patel said, “AAP’s (aggression) shows because its national leaders are constantly travelling, and they are more in the media limelight even for the smallest things. They are in the whole of Gujarat. In the case of the Congress, all their leaders go to one place – Saurashtra, Surat, Vadodara. In front of them, their competing party (AAP) is doing meetings in all four corners in one day… Their (AAP) strategy is definitely better than the Congress’s,” The Indian Express reported.
Hardik Patel's three-year stint in the Congress party came to an end on Wednesday, 18 May, as he announced his resignation by posting a letter on Twitter
In his letter, he has lashed out against the Congress leadership, terming it "anti-Gujarat" and even "anti-India."
‘Didn’t Visit Me After My Father Died’: Patel
Speaking on when Patel realised that he could no longer be a part of the Congress, he said that "if you are a social worker and an agitationist," then the Congress will offer support and "talk sweetly."
However, in his case, for example, Patel said, "From 2015-18, they would talk to me, come to meet me, ask what could be done… Once I joined the party, they forgot all this. Then they saw me as a competitor," The Indian Express reported.
Complaining about how even after becoming the working president, his pictures were not there in any party posters, Patel said, "I organised all the meetings myself, but did you see even a picture of the working president in any of the party posters? Was the working president just a lollipop? You didn’t even call me to important meetings, did not consult."
He added, "The beginning (of the problem) was when my father died, that is one instance that left a deep impact. Not one Congress leader came (to see me)."
(With inputs from The Indian Express.)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)