The Patidar agitation spearhead Hardik Patel was granted bail on a Rs 5,000 bond after he appeared in a court in Gujarat’s Visnagar today.
A non-bailable warrant was issued in the name of the Patidar leader on Wednesday in connection with an allegation of sacking the BJP MLA Rishikesh Patel’s office during a rally in July 2015 and also pelting stone at the MLA’s car while it passed through the ITI Circle in Visnagar, a city located in Mehsana district.
In his statement to the media yesterday, the agitated Patel had said that it would only increase the troubled for the BJP if he was arrested. Significantly the warrant was issued on the day when the Election Commision announced the dates for the assembly elections in Gujarat.
Prior to the non-bailable arrest warrant, Hardik was also in the headlines for speculation of holding a meeting behind the closed doors in Umeed hotel in Ahmedabad, with Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi. After the leakage of five CCTV camera footage, it was all over the news that Patel met Gandhi but did not want to reveal the whereabouts of the meeting.
However, the Patidar leader denied meeting with Rahul arguing that why would he meet Rahul secretly. Though he agreed that he met the Gujarat Congress in charge Ashok Gehlot and state Congress President Bharatsinh Solanki to discuss the issues affecting the Patidar community, including OBC quota.
After all these dramatic chains of events, the possible tie-up between Congress and the Patidars is still under muddy waters. Hardik Patel has though made it clear that he is working to defeat BJP in Gujarat, but he has also said that he would extend his support to the party who fulfills the demand of the Patidars. This statement means that in the last minute, if the BJP agrees to the demand of including the Patidars under the OBC quota, Patel could end his protest and support BJP during the assembly election which is scheduled to be held on 9 and 14 Dec.
Meanwhile, on the other hand, Congress is also not leaving any stone unturned to end its political exile of 22 years in Gujarat. Congress had extended its hand to all the community leaders, who are unhappy with the incumbent government in the state. As for now only Alpesh Thakor, leader of the OBC community has officially joined hands with the Congress.
As per the latest updates and the statements of Hardik Patel, the game of the changing political equation in Gujarat now all depends on Congress. Hardik in his statement to the press on Wednesday had said that “During my meeting with Gujarat Congress in-charge Ashok Gehlot, I had sought the party’s stand on how it will give quota to Patidars. It must clarify whether or not it will give quota under OBC category.”
The main demand of the Patidars is that the community should be provided reservation under the OBC quota or be included in the Constitution’s 9th Schedule. “Once Congress clarifies its stand, we will certainly declare our support to the party in the assembly elections,” Patel said.
Replying to the question on possibilities of being offered quota under EBC (economically backward class) category, Hardik said that the EBC quota has been rejected by the courts and has no constitutional validity.
The Patidar leader, in return for the Patidar support, has also demanded greater representation for the Patels, who have been traditional BJP voters, if the Congress government is formed in Gujarat.
Responding to the demands of Hardik Patel, the senior-most Patel leader in the Gujarat Congress, Siddharth Patel assured that a legal team was working on the plan as to meet the demands of the Patidar. “We are open to all options, like EBC or a constitutional amendment. The party will clarify its strategy soon. In principle, the Congress has decided to take all possible actions to meet the demand of the Patidars,” Siddharth Patel said.
Attacking the ruling BJP in Gujarat, another senior Patel leader and Gujarat Congress working president Paresh Dhanani, alleged that the BJP has been misleading the people of Gujarat from a long time. After the CCTV footage leakage Gujarat Congress in charge, Ashok Gehlot had also in a string of tweets attacked the BJP for spying on the activities of the party.
The Patidars hold one-fifth of the total population in Gujarat and are one of the oldest vote banks of BJP. The entire game plan can be changed with the support of the Patidars. With the rising anti-incumbency feeling in Gujarat and the OBC already on the side of Congress, BJP is getting nervous day by day. The restlessness of the party can be seen as only a few days back a Patidar leader only hours after joining the BJP revealed in a press conference that he was offered 1 crore to join the party.
Then the recent event of the speculation of Hardik meeting Rahul Gandhi and the allegations of BJP spying on Congress and also the non-bailable arrest warrant against the Patidar leader is depicting a different story of the ruling BJP in Gujarat.
However, the Patidars seems to be clear on their point that they will support the party who will meet the demands of the community. A close aide of Hardik Patel and PAAS co-convener, Dinesh Bambhania, said, “Our stand is clear. We want OBC quota as defined under constitutional provisions. If the Congress has any other plan, it must clarify and then we will decide whether to support or not.”