In a development that could change the course of the Patidar reservation agitation, and also impact the election battle, a sex video, allegedly showing stir leader Hardik Patel in a compromising position with a woman, surfaced on Monday. Hardik, who expressed apprehensions a few days ago that his opponents could release a sex tape to defame him, denied being the male in the video, and accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of being behind it.
DNA can't independently vouch for the authenticity of the 10-minute video which went viral within minutes of surfacing on Monday afternoon. The video, which was also uploaded on YouTube but was subsequently taken down, shows a male bearing close resemblance to Hardik sharing private moments with a female in a hotel room. The video is allegedly from the evening of May 16.
Incidentally, Hardik was attending the core committee meeting of Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS) when the video surfaced.
"I have said earlier too that such allegations are going to be made (ahead of polls). Our core committee was meeting to decide on Congress's proposals offering reservation to Patidars. This is election time. Our agitation is going strong. Winds of changes are sweeping Gujarat, and such allegations will be made," Hardik told reporters.
He alleged that the video was made in Bangkok, and vowed to take necessary legal steps. Dismissing the tape as a political stunt, the Patidar quota stir leader warned that BJP members will make even worse attempts to defame him going ahead. However, the BJP distanced itself from the sex tape, saying it has nothing to do with it.
BJP leader and Union Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said that PAAS member Ashvin Sakalsariya had released the tape, and "BJP is not linked to it in any way".
Mandaviya described Congress leader Shaktisinh Gohil's comment that Hardik had Sardar's DNA as Sardar Patel's insult.
Coming out in Hardik's support, Gohil also said that the state government had put Hardik behind the bars, but he refused to toe the BJP's line, and hence the party is trying to pin him down. He compared the tape to that of former BJP leader Sanjay Joshi's fake sex CD which had surfaced a few years ago.
With just a month to go for the elections, the sex tape can hurt Hardik, who has emerged as the face of the Patel community. While he has not yet publicly announced support for the Congress, he has done so tacitly by calling for BJP's defeat.
NO ROLE, SAYS BJP
- The BJP has distanced itself from the sex tape, saying it has nothing to do with it.
- BJP leader and Union Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said PAAS member Ashvin Sakalsariya had released the tape.
- “BJP is not linked to it in any way,” the Union Minister said.
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