In a campaign speech that blended political messaging with local cultural symbolism, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday invoked Bengal’s iconic street snack jhal muri to sharpen his attack on the ruling Trinamul Congress (TMC), using a widely discussed campaign moment to underscore his party’s claim of an impending electoral shift.
Addressing a rally in Krishnagar amid the first phase of Assembly polling, Mr Modi referred to his recent stop in Jhargram where he was seen pausing to enjoy jhal muri, a gesture that quickly gained traction across political circles and drew jibes from opposition parties. Turning the episode into a rhetorical flourish, the Prime Minister said the snack had already delivered a “stinging shock” to the TMC.
“We have observed in the past that wherever the country has witnessed a massive voter turnout, the BJP has achieved a resounding victory,” he said, linking the ongoing polling in West Bengal to what he described as a broader national trend favouring the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Projecting confidence ahead of the results, Mr Modi declared that 4 May would mark the beginning of BJP’s victory celebrations in the state. “Sweets will be distributed, and jhal muri will be handed out too,” he said, before adding with a characteristic flourish: “Jhal muri maine khaayi lekin jhal TMC ko lagi hai” (I ate the snack, but the sting was felt by the TMC).
The remark drew loud cheers from the crowd and formed part of a broader attempt by the Prime Minister to frame the election as a contest between “fear and trust,” with high voter turnout, he argued, signalling a decisive public mandate for change.
Political observers note that the appropriation of a local cultural symbol such as jhal muri reflects the BJP’s effort to localise its campaign narrative in Bengal, even as it continues to mount an aggressive critique of the TMC’s governance record.
With polling underway and campaigning intensifying, Mr Modi’s speech underscored the BJP’s strategy of combining sharp political attacks with symbolic gestures aimed at resonating with regional identity, turning even a roadside snack into a campaign metaphor for electoral momentum.