Tarun Gajjar, the person who slapped Hardik Patel at an election rally in Surendranagar on Friday, claimed that he was not connected with any political party, but had done so to teach the Patidar reservation stir leader a lesson.
Gajjar suffered severe injuries after he was overpowered and beaten up by Congress workers and Hardik's supporters. He was admitted to hospital, where he told reporters that he had suffered personally because of Hardik's protests, and was planning to attack Hardik for over three years.
"I am not associated with any political party. My wife was pregnant when the Patidar agitation took place (in August 2015). She was undergoing treatment at a hospital. Everything was also shut when I went to get medicine for my child. I had suffered then, and had decided that I would hit him, and teach him a lesson," he told reporters from the hospital bed. However, several photos of Gajjar with Mehsana MP Jayshreeben Patel and other BJP leaders, hinting at his links with politicians, were being shared online.