Hardik Patel quits Congress, takes aim at those ‘vacationing abroad’

Hardik Patel quits Congress: “It is unfortunate that workers like us who travel 500-600 kilometres in our cars in a single day, get to see big leaders of Congress are far away from issues of Gujarat but are more focused on ensuring chicken sandwiches for leaders who have come from Delhi are delivered on time.”

Hardik Patel Wednesday resigned from the Congress party, accusing its “top leadership” of hating Gujarat and Gujaratis and lacking any seriousness. In a resignation letter ahead of the Gujarat Assembly Elections to party president Sonia Gandhi, the Patidar leader also accused the Congress of “working against the interest of the country and society”.

For the past year, Hardik Patel had been criticising the Congress’s state leadership accusing them of not keeping him in the loop over organisational decisions and sabotaging his political prospects. Now, Patel, who was the Gujarat Congress Working president, hit out at the top leadership for “vacationing abroad.”

Hardik Patel, 28, who shot into the limelight after the 2015 Patidar reservation agitation in Gujarat, joined Congress in 2019 and was appointed as the working president in July 2020. He was absent from the three-day Congress Chintan Shivir in Rajasthan’s Udaipur. He had also met Khodaldham founder and Patidar leader Naresh Patel two days ago. The Indian Express reported earlier that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) held a Chintan Shivir in Gujarat two days ago during which the issue of Hardik Patel was discussed.

Patel took to Twitter on Wednesday morning and wrote, “Today, with courage, I am submitting my resignation from the post and primary membership of Congress party. I am hopeful that my decision will be welcomed by each friend and the people of Gujarat. I believe this step of mine will help in working in a positive manner for Gujarat in future.”

Hardik Patel also shared his resignation letter with Sonia Gandhi. “Despite several attempts to steer the Congress in the right direction, the party has been constantly working against the interests of my country and our society… Over the last three years I have found that the Congress party and its leadership both at the central and state levels have been merely reduced to opposing everything, whereas the people always seek an alternative that thinks of their future and is capable of taking India ahead,” he said.

The Patidar leader, who has praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the past, once again wrote about how the Congress opposed the steps taken by the Centre. “Be it the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, revocation of Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir, or implementation of GST, India wanted solutions for these subjects for a long time and Congress only played the role of a roadblock and was always only obstructive.
When it came to issues related to India, Gujarat and my Patidar community, Congress’s only stand was to oppose whatever the government of India led by Prime Minister Narendra Modiji did! Congress today has been rejected in almost every state of India because the party and its leadership have not been able to present a basic roadmap to the people,” he added.

Patel also attacked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in his resignation letter. “The lack of seriousness about all issues is a major problem with the Congress party’s senior leadership. Whenever I met with the senior leadership, I always felt that leaders were not really interested in hearing about problems concerning the people of Gujarat but were more engrossed in what messages they had received on their mobiles and other trivial things. Whenever our country faced challenges and when the Congress needed leadership, Congress leaders were enjoying abroad,” he said.
“Senior leaders behave in a way like they hate Gujarat and Gujaratis. How in the world can the Congress then expect that people of Gujarat will see them as an alternative to lead our state? It is unfortunate that workers like us who travel 500-600 kilometres in our cars in a single day to meet people, get to see that big leaders of Congress are far away from the issues of Gujarat but are more focussed on ensuring that chicken sandwiches for leaders who have come from Delhi are delivered on time. Whenever I went among the youth I was always asked why I was in a party which constantly insulted Gujaratis – be it in the business sector, in matters of religion and even in politics. Gujaratis can never forget how the Congress party has insulted Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. I strongly believe that Congress has broken the faith youth had in the party for many years and that is why today no youngster is willing to be even seen as our worker or voter.”
Patel also hit out at the state leadership accusing them of weakening the party, saying they “diluted many issues of public importance-all for humongous personal financial gains”. “Even when people like me wanted to do something good for the state, I and my community were faced with ridicule and contempt. When I joined the Congress, I did not know that the hearts and minds of the leadership of the Congress are filed with such hatred towards our country, towards my community and especially towards the youth.”