“It isn’t that the agitation is being done because Gujarat is facing an election this year. We have been hearing that the government is withdrawing the cases, but nothing has been done so far,” said Patel adding, “My team can assist the government if the government wants”. It is worth recalling here that cases were slapped against hundreds of Patidars by the BJP government during the 2015 agitation that had turned violent. Fourteen Patidar youths had lost their lives, demanding reservation. Hardik Patel, face of the Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS), was jailed for taking part in the agitation. Following the 2015 PAAS agitation, the Modi government had announced 10 per cent reservation for the economically weaker sections of society. Hardik Patel claimed that the Central government was forced to give reservation due to the protest.
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