New Delhi: Denying rumours of leaving the grand old party, Gujarat Congress working president Hardik Patel has said he is guilty if speaking the truth is a crime.
“There is a rumour that I am leaving Congress, I do not know who is spreading so,” ANI quoted Patel as saying while attending an event in Surat, Gujarat, earlier on Thursday.
Patel said that he has given his 100 percent to the Congress till now and will give the same in the coming days.
“We will do better development in Gujarat. There will be small fights and blame games within the party, but we have to work together to make Gujarat a better place,” he added.
Patel said the people of Gujarat have high expectations from the Congress.
“If speaking truth is a crime, consider me guilty. The people of Gujarat have expectations from us, we have to stand up to them,” he said.
Patel also said he had complained to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi several times about the harassment but no action has been taken yet.
Patel had earlier accused his party leadership of ignoring and sidelining him as the Congress prepares for a battle with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Gujarat.
“My position in the party is that of a new groom who has been made to undergo nasbandi (vasectomy),” the Indian Express quoted a miffed Patel as saying.
Patel, who emerged as the leader of the Patidar agitation demanding reservation for the community in Gujarat earlier in 2015, later joined the Congress.
The Congress made gains in the 2017 Gujarat Assembly elections.
The grand old party, however, did not receive the support of the Patidar community in the 2019 election or local body polls.