The Patidar trouble for the BJP in Gujarat is far from over. On Sunday, the leaders of Patidar Anamat Aandolan Samiti (PAAS) were detained while they were protesting the renaming of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Motera Stadium as Narendra Modi stadium.
This is just one among the multiple issues festering between the BJP and the Patidar community, which includes the BJP’s stand on the differences among the Swaminarayan sects, the party’s difficulty in placating community leader Naresh Patel and the overall crisis facing agriculture and the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) sectors controlled by members of this community.
“This agitation will go for long. Changing the name of Patel is like denigrating the history of Indian freedom struggle. The government can name any other stadium in the name of the Prime Minister,” said Dharmik Malviya, the convenor of PAAS.
