Patel quota row: Hardik prevented from meeting BJP MLA in Gujarat

Ahmedabad: Patel quota agitation spearhead Hardik Patel’s fresh drive to muster the support of MLAs of to his community on Monday ran into police resistance as he was stopped from meeting local MLA Vallabh Kakadia in Ahmedabad. Hardik, convener of Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS), had earlier announced that PAAS members will give a rose to each Patel community MLA in Gujarat as part of their drive to know whether these legislators support their quota agitation or not. Under this drive which started today, Hardik along with seven other PAAS members went to meet Kakadia, who also belongs to Patel community, at his office in Bapunagar this morning. [caption id=“attachment_2424504” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Hardik Patel.[/caption] However, police as well as para military forces cordoned off the office area since morning and the PASS leader and his supporters were not even allowed to get down from their car and were asked to leave the place without meeting the MLA. “We want every Patel MLA to make his stand clear about our demand to give reservation benefit to our community under OBC quota. When we reached Kakadia’s office in Bapunagar, a huge number of police and paramilitary forces were already deployed,” Hardik told a press conference later. “Though only seven of the PAAS leaders went there to hand over the rose, the police did not even allow us to get down from our car and forced us to leave the place. Since we did not want any confrontation, we returned without meeting him,” he added. According to him, Kakadia needs to make his stand clear if he claims that he is always with Patel community. “If Kakadia claims that he is with the community, then why didn’t he utter a single word during the assembly session about the custodial death of Shwetang Patel in his constituency. Since he refused to meet us, it is clear that he is not with his community,” Hardik alleged. Shwetang, who was forcibly taken away by the police on August 25 during the Patel community’s agitation, died allegedly in police custody. Continuing their state-wide drive to seek support of MLAs belonging to Patel community, Hardik had announced that he would meet BJP MLA from Maninagar seat in the city Suresh Patel tomorrow. “We will meet Suresh Patel tomorrow and try to give him a rose as part of our exercise to know his stand. It would be better on his part if he gives us time. Otherwise, the community will take an appropriate decision,” Hardik said. On the proposed ‘reverse’ Dandi March, called to press for reservation for Patidar community in government jobs and educational institutions, Hardik said more than 14 lakh Patels will participate in the march, which is scheduled to start on September 13 from Dandi in south Gujarat and conclude in Ahmedabad. “When Gandhiji started the march, there were 78 people with him. Similarly, I will start the march with similar number of participants on September 13 from Dandi. As it would advance, more people will join us. We expect more than 14 lakh people to take part in the march,” he said. He also asserted the march will be held even if the government denies permission for it. About the ongoing protest against the march in 33 villages near Dandi which fall on the route, Hardik said since he does not want any confrontation with the villagers, the route to be taken by the marchers has been changed. “I learnt that 33 villages of Koli-Patel (OBC) community are protesting against our march. They are our brothers and we don’t want any confrontation. We have decided not to take our march through these villages to avoid confrontation,” he said. Hardik accused the state’s BJP government and its leaders of inciting the villagers to protest against the march. “The BJP-led state government and some of its leaders are creating rift and enmity between communities by inciting villagers to protest against the march. BJP men were also behind recent protests against me in the city. This is their attempt to break the agitation,” he alleged. PTI