- PM Modi spent Sunday addressing four back-to-back rallies across Purulia, Jhargram, Medinipur and Bishnupur
- “Had some delicious Jhalmuri in Jhargram,” PM Modi wrote on X
- Jhalmuri is a puffed rice mixture typically prepared with chillies, onions and mustard oil
Campaign stops are usually about speeches and slogans. In West Bengal's Jhargram, they briefly turned into a snack break. Prime Minister Narendra Modi paused between rallies in West Bengal to try jhalmuri, a popular local street food.
The prime minister spent Sunday addressing four back-to-back rallies across Purulia, Jhargram, Medinipur and Bishnupur. In between, he stopped at a small shop in Jhargram and tried jhalmuri.
“In between four rallies across West Bengal on a packed Sunday, had some delicious Jhalmuri in Jhargram,” he wrote on X, posting images and a short video.
In the clip, he is seen asking the shopkeeper to make the snack. When he offered to pay, the vendor initially declined before accepting the money after insistence.
Jhalmuri is a puffed rice mixture typically prepared with chillies, onions and mustard oil.
Earlier in the day, PM Modi addressed large gatherings as part of what the BJP has called its Vijay Sankalp Sabha campaign. His speeches focused heavily on the ruling All India Trinamool Congress and its record on women's representation.
He accused the party of opposing the proposal for 33 per cent reservation for women in Parliament, calling it a “betrayal of the sisters of Bengal”.
“The women of Bengal wanted 33% reservation. Modi ensured this. The women of Bengal wanted it to be implemented from 2029. Modi also made efforts for this. But Trinamool did not want more of Bengal's daughters to become MLAs and MPs since the daughters were challenging their ‘Maha Jungle Raj',” he said at a rally in Bankura.
He also criticised the party over its stance on tribal representation, contrasting it with the election of Droupadi Murmu as India's first tribal president.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee rejected the allegations, pointing to her party's record.
“We have the highest proportion of female elected representatives in both Parliament and the State Legislature. In the Lok Sabha, 37.9% of our elected members are women. In the Rajya Sabha, we have nominated 46% women members,” she said in a post online.
West Bengal will vote in two phases on April 23 and April 29, with counting scheduled for May 4.
