Opposition sees opening in Gujarat after BJP’s civic polls defeat

GANDHINAGAR: BJP’s debacle in the civic polls seems to have galvanized everyone who wants a piece of the Gujarat pie.

While the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has declared that it would provide a third option to the people of Gujarat in the 2017 assembly elections, an associate of Hardik Patel and former general secretary of Rashtriya Lok Samata Party Akhilesh Kaityar, said he is meeting West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee on December 11, apparently to seek support for the Patidar agitation.

AAP had organised a meeting in Ahmedabad on Sunday, attended by its national leaders, where it has decided to expand its support base ahead of the state polls.

Sanjay Singh, an AAP leader, said the party would organize about 50 rallies in villages over the next six months apart from strengthening the organization at the booth level.

It had tried to set up an organization in the state ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, but it didn’t work.

BJP spokesperson Harshad Patel, however, refused to attach much importance to AAP’s initiatives, saying it should much rather stick to Delhi.

Meanwhile, Katiyar said that he had a meeting with Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, who had assured support on the Patidar issue.

“Mamata has already expressed her concern on this issue and we shall invite her to come to Gujarat and meet Hardik if need be,” Katiyar told ET. Ironically Katiyar’s overtures are not finding any favour among the Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS) activists. “He (Katiyar) is basically trying to stay relevant by using Hardik’s name, and now it looks like everyone is out to derive mileage out of this issue,” said Varun Patel, a PAAS member.

“I would even go as far as to request Mamata to refrain from trivializing the issue for cheap publicity. A tweet or two can get you some publicity temporarily, but if you are indeed bothered, please do something to help the agitation at the ground level,” he said.