Fast breaks Hardik juggernaut

The irony of his quick rise and fall was not lost on those who were present on Wednesday when Patidar reservation leader Hardik Patel broke his fast by consuming lime and coconut water amid a handful of supporters and community leaders.

Hardik sat on fast on August 25, the third anniversary of the massive Mahakranti Rally in Ahmedabad in 2015, demanding debt waiver for farmers and reservation for Patidars in government jobs and higher education institutes.

After breaking the fast, he said: “(I am breaking the fast) out of respect for community elders. Now that they are with me, I have nothing to worry. I am recharged by the 19-day fast and will continue the fight for next 19 years, if need be.”

Those present on the occasion included leaders of two highest religious places of Patidars in Gujarat — Naresh Patel of Khodaldham and C K Patel of Umiyadham.

The two hailed the occasion by saying it’s a “golden day” for the community as one of its youngsters broke his fast.

None of the other Patidar reservation agitation leaders like Lalji Patel, Dilip Sabva, Atul Patel or Dinesh Bambhaniya were present on the occasion.

The only consolation for Hardik Patel was presence of community leaders from Khodaldham, Vishwa Umiya Foundation and Umiyadham.

Why Hardik lost the plot
From first being looked upon as a “BJP tool”, lately the Patidar leader was perceived to have become a “puppet” of Congress. Even during the fast, it was Gujarat and national Congress leaders who paid him visits. Unlike the Mahakranti rally that was attended by lakhs, there was no swell of common Patidar supporters at his fast.

The first seeds of discontent got sown when Lalji Patel-led Sardar Patel Group spearheading the Patidar reservation agitation organised Mahakranti rally in Ahmedabad on August 25, 2015 and Hardik tried to hog the limelight by projecting himself as the sole leader of the quota movement.

But what dented Hardik’s image forever was circulation of “sex CDs” on social media in November 2017, ahead of the Gujarat Assembly polls, which showed him in compromising position with unknown women. Later, he admitted that “he had committed some mistakes” but the damage had been done. Several prominent PAAS leaders like Dinesh Bambhaniya, Atul Patel, Dilip Sabva, Lalji Patel, Nikhil Savani parted ways with Hardik after the scam broke out while Varun Patel and Reshma Patel joined the BJP. Atul Patel later joined the Congress. In October 2017, Hardik went against PAAS decision not to engage with Congress ahead of the Assembly polls. He met then Congress President-designate Rahul Gandhi at a hotel in Ahmedabad. Videos of his exiting the hotel with a briefcase made his supporters suspicious about his ethics.

Hardik Patel started out from a modest two-room house in Viramgam town of Gujarat. In 2017, he started to live in a plush flat in Thaltej locality of Ahmedabad and started moving around in a Fortuner, while his parents used another car. The changed lifestyle, much beyond his means, created an impression that he had lost focus on the agitation and was engaging in promoting his own interests.

His popular support ebbed further when he spent lakhs to hold a lavish wedding for his sister. When he was questioned about it, he had famously said, “It was every brother’s duty to organise lavish wedding for his sister.” During the latest fast between August 25 and September 12, he made public his will in which he showed Rs 50,000 bank balance. With the state BJP government not succumbing to his demands, Hardik has a long fight ahead.

It remains to be seen whether he can regain lost ground. For now, he’s headed to a popular wellness clinic in Bengaluru for detox, said PAAS sources.