Hardik Patel resigns from Congress membership ahead of Gujarat polls

Hardik Patel (File image)

Hardik Patel has quit the Congress, months before the Gujarat assembly election. Announcing his decision on Twitter with a resignation letter addressed to party president Sonia Gandhi, Patel said he was “gathering the courage to resign from the Congress party and post”.

“I am sure my decision will be welcomed by my colleagues and the people of Gujarat. I believe that with this step, I will be able to work really positively for Gujarat in future," he said.

आज मैं हिम्मत करके कांग्रेस पार्टी के पद और पार्टी की प्राथमिक सदस्यता से इस्तीफा देता हूँ। मुझे विश्वास है कि मेरे इस निर्णय का स्वागत मेरा हर साथी और गुजरात की जनता करेगी। मैं मानता हूं कि मेरे इस कदम के बाद मैं भविष्य में गुजरात के लिए सच में सकारात्मक रूप से कार्य कर पाऊँगा। pic.twitter.com/MG32gjrMiY

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— Hardik Patel (@HardikPatel_) May 18, 2022

The 28-year-old leader is considered face of the Patidar community which has been a staunch supporter of the BJP. He met  Patidar community’s influential leader Naresh Patel in Gujarat's Saurashtra on May 15 and requested him to take a call regarding joining politics at the earliest.

Buzz is that the youth leader is planning to join the BJP.

In the last polls held in 2017, Hardik, is said to have played a key role for the Congress in the assembly polls, helping the party win 77 seats and restrict the BJP to 99 in the 182-member house.

"When I met top leaders, they seemed distracted by their mobile phones and other issues as opposed to listening to issues concerning Gujarat," he said hitting out at leadership of the party

"Our leader was abroad when he was needed in India during critical times," Patel wrote refering to Rahul Gandhi

Patel's letter comes just days after Congress party's brainstorming session to discuss revival ahead of upcoming state polls and 2024 general elections.

Patel's exit ahead of polls would mean yet another jolt for Congress, after setbacks in recent assembly polls in five states. Gujarat is going to polls by the end of this year.