Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani on Thursday said that he would not join any political party ahead of the upcoming Assembly election in Gujarat. Amid reports that he met Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi, Mevani said he had not met any leader of any political party and that he has no reason to meet either.

“I am not joining any political party ahead of the elections, including the Congress,” Mevani, the convenor of the Rashtriya Dalit Adhikar Manch, said while addressing reporters. He said, however, if Gandhi or any other Congress leader decides to hold talks with him to discuss the demands made by the Dalit group, he was ready to meet. “But it will not be to get a ticket [to contest in the elections],” he said.

He accused the Bharatiya Janata Party government in Gujarat of being arrogant and ignoring the matters of the Dalit in the state in its 22-year rule. He also asked the Congress to make its stand clear on the demands made by the Dalit group.

On October 21, Congress Gujarat President Bharatsinh Solanki had invited Mevani, Patidar movement leader Hardik Patel and Thakor community leader Alpesh Thakor to join the fight against the BJP. The same evening, Thakor had announced that he was joining the Congress. There have been reports that Patel met Gandhi last week during the Congress vice president’s visit to the poll-bound state. However, Patel and his aides have repeatedly denied this.