Formerly in Congress, Patidar leader Hardik Patel to join BJP on June 2
Highlight
- Patidar leader Hardik Patel will join BJP on June 2.
- He resigned from the post of working president of Gujarat Congress on 18 May.
- Patel’s decision to join the BJP comes just ahead of the Gujarat Assembly elections.
Hardik Patel will join BJP: Former working president of Gujarat Congress and Patidar leader Hardik Patel will join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on June 2, he told news ANI on Tuesday.
Patel’s decision to join the BJP a few days after leaving the Congress assumes significance as it comes just ahead of the Gujarat Assembly elections. Elections in the western state are due by the end of this year.
Speculation about Patel joining the BJP or the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had intensified ever since he left the Congress on May 18. The 28-year-old politician, in his farewell note, accused the Congress leadership of not being serious about elections.
BJP state spokesperson Yagnesh Dave said, “It has been confirmed that Hardik Patel will join BJP on June 2 in the presence of state president CR Patil.”
Hardik Patel came into limelight after leading the Patidar reservation movement in 2015. Hardik joined the Congress in 2019 despite a public promise not to enter politics. He was appointed as working president of Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) in July 2020.
Patel, after resigning from the Congress, alleged that the old party has no vision for the state where it has been out of power since 1995. He said the top party leaders were distracted by their mobile phones and were more interested in arranging chicken sandwiches. During Rahul Gandhi’s recent visit to launch the party’s election campaign.
The ruling BJP hopes the entry of Patel, once a staunch critic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, will strengthen its position in the state, where it has won every election held since 1995.
Patidars constitute one-sixth of Gujarat’s population of 6.5 crore. Securing the votes of Patidars is important for any political party to win elections as a change in their stand can affect the outcome.
Read also: You can’t abuse Adani or Ambani every time: Hardik Patel targets Congress