Leader of the Patel agitation in Gujarat, Hardik Patel has announced plans to expand his movement across the country and started off by batting for Gurjars in Delhi with demands to return their land acquired for various purposes. Patel said his Akhil Bharatiya Patel Navnirman Sena, an umbrella organisation for Patels, Kurmis, Gujjars and Marathas, will work towards the rights of its communities in different parts of the country taking up causes of women, farmers, workers and the youth.
Saying that his organisation is already active in 17 states including Delhi, Haryana, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Assam, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Telangana, Patel told reporters that “there was no organization to work for women and farmers across the country” and that was why he had floated his outfit. Making it clear that his organisation would not be support any party, he said it will support Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar in the upcoming assembly polls as he was a Kurmi leader.
The group has planned five big rallies. While the dates for Ram Lila Maidan in Delhi and in pollbound Bihar have not been decided, two rallies in Madhya Pradesh on October 11 and November 5. and one in Raipur on November 25 have been locked down. The 22 year old leader said, “When we came to Delhi, we learnt that our brothers' lands had been acquired at meagre amounts and now huge structures have come over there.” Insisting that he did not want to give a political shape to the newly formed group, he added that a decision on this will be taken when required. “Its job will be to protect the people of Patel, Kurmi and Gujjar community, farmers, workers and women. We have spread our organisation in Gujarat, UP. Bihar and Chhatisgarh. There should be one voice of the Patels, Marathas, Kurmis, Gujjars,” he said.
