Quota stir exposes ‘hollowness’ of claims on Gujarat model

Hyderabad: The agitation by the Patel Community in Gujarat has exposed the hollowness of BJP’s claim of inclusive growth in Gujarat, said CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury here on Thursday.

Addressing a media conference, he said the demand for reservation would arise when job, education and livelihood opportunities were denied. “The fact that demand for reservation came from a fairly well-to-do community is the clearest proof that the Gujarat model is not an inclusive model," Yechury said.

The agitation has "thoroughly exposed all the claims that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been making and all the propaganda that we have heard for more than two years on this so-called Gujarat model," he said.

Noting "great deal of discontent in Patel community," Yechury said this clearly showed that the Gujarat model had benefited "very, very few people" and not the entire population or even major sections of the people. "So, it's a complete failure of Gujarat model," he said.

While it was "good" that the Army was been called in to control the violent situation, the then Gujarat government never showed "this alacrity" during the 2002 communal riots, the CPI(M) leader said. "But, just remember that in 2002, they did not call for Army for a long, long time.

So, that itself now, in retrospect, is proof of what was their role then," Yechury said. Tension had been prevailing in Gujarat as nine persons were so far killed in clashes which started on Tuesday during quota agitation by Patel community. Army was deployed in major cities to rein in the violence.