The giant-killer from Gondia who turned rebel
In 1999, he became a member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) and was re-elected in 2004.
Mumbai: An ambitious leader, Nana Patole has been in the spotlight following his attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi three months ago. Mr Patole had claimed that Mr Modi does not like being asked questions, which became national news. But, many who know Mr Patole are aware of his inclination to take on those in power.
The 54-year-old leader hails from a backward region of Maharashtra — Bhandara in Gondia. Mr Patole entered politics in 1990 when he became a member of the then-Bhandara Zilla Parishad (ZP) on a Congress ticket. In 1999, he became a member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) and was re-elected in 2004.
Mr Patole wanted to be a minister and also desired to become the leader of the other backward classes (OBC) community in Vidarbha. But due to internal dynamics of Congress, he felt that he was never allowed to grow. Hence, he left Congress in 2008, attacking the state leadership and then chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh over farmers’ issues. In 2009, he fought against Nationalist Congress Party’s (NCP) Praful Patel in Lok Sabha elections as an independent candidate and lost the election.
In the same year, he joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and became an MLA. From 2009 to 2014, Mr Patole worked in Gondia Lok Sabha constituency. In 2014, with the help of Modi wave, Mr Patole emerged as a giant killer by defeating Mr Patel.
Mr Patole thought that he would be BJP’s OBC face in Vidarbha and would be given prominent space within the party as well as region. But, the party leadership reportedly overlooked his demands, and the sulking leader started criticising the BJP’s leadership.
After attacking PM Modi, Mr Patole met former finance minister Yashwant Sinha and asked him to agitate against the state government over farmers’ issues. Mr Patole also met Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray and Congress leader Ashok Chavan, among others.