Want to defeat BJP in Gujarat, awaiting Congress' response: Hardik Patel

Ahmedabad: Gujarat's powerful Patidar community leader Hardik Patel, who is believed to have secretly met Rahul Gandhi at a hotel in Ahmedabad, said on Tuesday that his main aim is to defeat BJP in the upcoming assembly elections.

Our aim is to defeat BJP. We are awaiting a response from the Congress party since it has agred to our demands, Hardik Patel was quoted as saying by TV news channels.

The remarks from Hardik Patel, who had spearheaded the Patel quota agitation in Gujarat, came after it appeared that he had a 'secret' meeting with Rahul Gandhi at a hotel in Ahmedabad yesterday.

The rumoured Hardik Patel-Rahul Gandhi meeting had triggered intense speculations about the Congress warming up to the Patel community ahead of crucial assembly elections in Gujarat.

Gujarati TV news channels had on Monday claimed that Hardik Patel had reportedly met Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, for about 40 minutes at The Ummed Hotel in Ahmedabad on Monday.

The channels also aired video clips showing Hardik Patel entering and leaving the hotel where Rahul Gandhi was staying. 

Notably, the Gandhi scion was at The Ummed from Monday morning, while AICC member in-charge of Gujarat, Ashok Gehlot, held a series of meetings at the same hotel since late Sunday evening.

The speculation about Hardik's secret meeting with Rahul started doing the rounds after the Patel community leader claimed that he would not be able to meet the Gandhi scion on Monday morning as he would be at a public function in Mandal town. He reportedly showed up at the hotel around 4 pm yesterday and later went to Mandal around 7.30 pm to address a meeting there.

While it was claimed that Hardik met Rahul at the hotel along with Nikhil Savani, the Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS) co-convener who had quit the BJP on Monday, Congress leader Gehlot categorically denied that any such meeting took place between the two.

Hardik Patel had denied meeting Rahul Gandhi and said that he instead met Ashok Gehlot and Gujarat Congress president Bharatsinh Solanki to discuss the issues affecting the Patidar community, including OBC quota.

"Had I met Rahul, I would have met him in public, which would give me more mileage. Why should I meet Rahul secretly?" he had told reporters.

Solanki too  corroborated the statement, saying, "Hardik met me, Ashok Gehlot and other Congress leaders but not Rahul Gandhi. Though both were in the same hotel, they did not meet."

Later, Gehlot, in a series of tweets, accused the Gujarat government of spying on Congress leaders. 

Meanwhile, reacting to the issue, Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel today attacked Congress, saying that the Grand Old Party can do anything to form a government in the BJP-ruled state.

Congress would even send invitation to terrorists like Hafiz Saeed if it feels they can help them form government in Gujarat, Patel was quoted as saying by ANI.