Opinion | Mamata Banerjee's Bitter Loss And The Great Bengal 'Eggsplosion'

Politicians craft their image. And nothing shatters it like a slick of yolk drooling down their face or starched kurtas.

A source of protein for common folk can also be an agent of ultimate humiliation for the high and mighty when flung from a commoner's hand. People's version of "shelling" truth to the power.
Yes, we are talking about the humble egg.

In Bengal, Trinamool leaders today fear egg more than the BJP. Since the Assembly election results, people have found this new form of eggs-pressing their anger. Video of Trinamool netas, including Abhishek Banerjee and other MPs, with their faces and clothes smeared with eggs have gone viral. 

The images have evoked both glee and concern among people depending on the which of the ideological fence they sit.

Posted by BJP on its instagram feed

India has seen ink smearing, shoe attacks and even odd attempts to slap public representatives as expressions of anger, but egg attacks have not been seen with such ferocity in Indian political history as they have become common in Bengal.

The expression "egg on your face" largely remained an idiom till the losing side in Bengal literally had egg splattered on their faces. 

There are a few old examples.

Former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was egged by protesters at Heathrow and Southall in the United Kingdom in 1978 who were angry over the imposition of the Emergency.

In 2015, Youth Congress members attacked Odisha's then chief minister Naveen Patnaik's cavalcade with eggs.

But this never became a norm and accepted form of protest politically.

'Egging' In History

But in history, egg has been a potent tool of protest since at least the 16th century. A precursor to 'egging' in the ancient times was pelting of Roman Governor Vespasian with turnips by citizens angry with his policies.

Back in the Middle Ages and Renaissance, justice was very public. Offenders and political opponents were locked into stocks right in the town square while mobs threw whatever they had at them. Rotten eggs and vegetables came in handy.

Centuries later, theatre-goers borrowed the idea. If an actor flopped on stage in Elizabethan times, the crowd answered with rotten eggs and tomatoes. Eggs were the go-to missile - cheap, common, and messy enough to humiliate without actually killing anyone.

In modern times, before the Bengal egg barage, British politicians were most susceptible to this form of humiliation.

David Cameron, Nigel Farage, Ruth Kelly, George Galloway, Nick Griffin, Simon Cowell, David Blaine -- all have been egged.

Queen Elizabeth II faced egg attack in New Zealand in 1986

Even Queen Elizabeth II was not spared. On February 24, 1986, the Queen was pelted with raw eggs by demonstrators in Auckland, New Zealand. During a children's rally campaigner for land rights masquerading as crowd-control officers threw three eggs. One egg struck the car's windshield, while another splattered onto the Queen's pink coat.

In the US, Arnold Schwarzenegger faced egg attack in California while campaigning in 2003

It's Not Just Egg

Various food items have been used as symbols of protest in different places.

The act of throwing yogurt at politicians in Greece is known as "yaourtoma". It emerged as a prominent symbol of public outrage and indignation during the 2011 economic crisis.

During the 2014 Ukrainian revolution, protesters in Odesa threw pots of spaghetti at the Russian consulate.

Ukrainians splattered spaghetti on the Russian consulate in Odessa
Photo Credit: Ilya Varlamov

UK far right leader Nigel Farage had to endure a series of milkshake attacks during his election campaign. 'Milkshaking' became a term. Police had to order a McDonald's in Scotland to stop selling milkshakes over fears people would dunk them over Brexit campaigner Farage.

UK far-right leader Nigel Farage faced a series of milkshake attacks

A Bad (smelling) Precedent

Let's return to the eggsplosion back home.

They say "what Bengal thinks today, India thinks tomorrow". Today there are more eggs on Trinamool leaders' face than on kitchen pans. God forbid if it becomes a trend for others to follow and "egg on your face" becomes the predicament of losing politicians elsewhere.

Today the BJP is watching the Trinamool leaders' public humiliation with glee. Bengal minister Dilip Ghosh has dubbed it a "harmless innovation" by people to vent out their anger, even joking that prices of eggs have gone up in the state.

History tells us that vigilantism rarely remains confined to the intended targets. The shoe could be on the other foot without warning.

This idea of normalising of public humiliation as a substitute to due process is a slippery slope.

Bengali word for egg is "dim". Let's not slip into a "dimocracy".

(Mohd Asim is a Senior Editor with NDTV)

Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author