Kundaria sees Cong hand in Patidar stir for OBC quota

RAJKOT: At a time when agitation by Patidar community (Patels) for reservation under other backward class (OBC) is gaining momentum, senior BJP leader and Union minister of state for agriculture, Mohan Kundaria, on Saturday claimed that the Congress was backing the movement.
Kundaria was talking to media after attending a function for sapling plantation at the police headquarters in Rajkot city.The function was organized by the Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC) which saw 1 lakh saplings being planted to increase the city's green cover. Describing the movement for quota as politically motivated, Kundaria said, "The Congress is behind the agitation for OBC quota. I belong to Patel community but I have not received any communication regarding the demand for reservation from any of our community leaders."
Kundaria, who is a Kadva Patel and BJP MP from Rajkot, said that Supreme Court has laid down guidelines for reservation and Patels in Gujarat do not fall in that category.
However, demand for reservation by Patels in Saurashtra was gaining momentum and committees have been formed in various towns and cities to carry out rallies and protest programmes from August 3 to August 10.
On Friday, Leuva Patels and Kadva Patels took out rallies in various towns of Saurashtra and submitted memorandums demanding OBC quota to local government officials.
Patels in Devbhoomi Dwarka took out a 36km bike rally from Bhanvad to Jamkhambhalia and submitted a memorandum of their demand to district collector H K Patel.
Interestingly, four major organizations of Leuva Patel (Khodal dham at Kagvad and Saurashtra Leuva Patel Samaj in Surat) and Kadva Patel (Umiya Mataji Sansthan in Ujan and Umiya Mataji Sanshthan at Sidsar in Jamnagar) have maintained their distance from the agitation. They even published advertisement in a local daily clarifying that they had nothing to do with the people demanding OBC reservations and requested people of the community to maintain 'peace' in the state.