Maharashtra BJP MP Nana Patole. (File/Photo) Maharashtra BJP MP Nana Patole. (File/Photo)

Dissident BJP MP from Gondia-Bhandara Nana Patole continued to spit fire against “party’s policies”, saying he is slated to meet Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi during the forthcoming Winter Session of Parliament “on the latter’s request”.

Patole, however, kept dodging queries regarding his possible voluntary exit from the party.

“The party should carefully see for itself. I am getting invited by many other parties. I am not intending to quit the party. My point is only about exhorting the party to take corrective steps on many issues, the agrarian crisis in particular about which I have long been speaking out,” Patole said at a press conference in Nagpur on Thursday.

The outspoken MP, who had stirred a hornet’s nest about two months ago, when he said at a public function here that Prime Minister Narendra Modi doesn’t like to be questioned or criticised, attacked BJP spokesman Madhav Bhandari for his earlier remarks.

“Bhandari, who had gone into hiding upon not being made MLC, should keep off me and should address the issues confronting people. And he should check records when he says I should raise the issues at party forum and not in public. I have raised these issues with PM, in parliament and at party’s Pune convention,” Patole said.

“I can take the bulls by their horns (koni angavar ala tar shingavar gheu shakto),” Patole thundered.

Patole also announced that he is going to hold a farmers’ rally at Akola on December 1, which would be attended by senior party leaders Yashwant Sinha and Shatrughan Sinha.

“The rally is for highlighting the problems of cotton, soyabean and paddy farmers in Vidarbha. Both the state and Central government should address the issue honestly since number of farmers’ suicides has shot very high up. My whole fight with Modi was on this issue,” he said.

Patole also asked, “they said demonetisation has benefited the country. They should tell the people as to how much black money has been detected. They said they have unearthed Rs 300 crore from a man in Hyderabad. I checked from my sources to find that there was no such person there.”

Asked why he doesn’t meet RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, who has also flagged the issue of informal sectors and farmers and who wields moral authority over BJP, Patole said, “if they don’t listen to even him, why should I go and meet him?”

Asked why he doesn’t resign from the party which he is so disillusioned with, Patole said, “I only want that in the remaining two years the party should mend its ways and do something good for people, particularly farmers. And I don’t have any fascination for power. I came to this party when they had poor presence in 2009 and I had won as an independent then.”

When persistent queries about why he wished to continue in a party that doesn’t listen to him, Patole quipped, “let them declare that they have ushered in Peshwai then I will see.” The term Peshwai is derisively used by some historians to describe “misrule” under Brahmin Peshwa rulers of Maharashtra.”

Patole also flagged issues concerning OBCs like scholarships to OBC students. “Modi was touted as OBC leader but OBC students are not getting scholarships. Instead of an OBC, someone else got the jacket to wear,” Patole said in an oblique reference to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

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