The Patidar quota campaigning leader Hardik Patel seems to be inching closer to an alliance with the Congress ahead of the Assembly elections in Poll bound state Gujarat.

Though a meeting between Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi and Patel is not likely during Gandhi’s three-day yatra in the State from November 1 to 3, an association between his organization, Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS), and the Congress is a near assurance.

On Monday, at the first official convention between Patidar and Congress leaders, the two sides talked about reservation for the Patidar community, among other concerns. Right away after the deliberations, in which he was not present, Patel declared that the meeting was affirmative and there would be another round of talks on the quota concern.

Patel also renowned the Congress’s offer to take out all cases, including those of incitement to rebellion, appoint a Special inquiry Team to investigate police excesses during the 2015 campaigning, and set up a Savarna Vikas Aayog (an upper caste development authority) with a budget of ₹2,000 crore. He also referred to the Congress leaders’ offer to organize a compensation of ₹35 lakh for each family that lost a member in police firing.

Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and his deputy Nitin Patel badly criticized the meeting between the Congress leaders and the PAAS members as “match-fixing.”

“It is known to the people of Gujarat that Hardik and the Congress are playing a fixed match,” CM Rupani said.