Bazaar theke Ballot: Mamata Banerjee walks Kolkata markets to connect with vendors ahead of 2nd phase of Bengal election
The Statesman | 27 April 2026
The morning rush at a crowded Kolkata market suddenly slowed down. Heads turned. Voices dropped. And then the buzz began, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had walked in, unannounced, right into the middle of the chaos of vegetables, bargaining, and everyday survival.
As the 2026 West Bengal Assembly Elections 2026 heat up, this was politics, played out between baskets of potatoes and stacks of green vegetables.
Dressed in her familiar white saree and simple slippers, Banerjee moved through narrow market lanes like a regular customer.
She stopped at vegetable stalls picking up everyday items and asking sellers about prices. Potatoes, onions, seasonal greens. These were not random choices. These are the items that decide a household budget, and in Bengal politics, they often become flashpoints.
The Chief Minister asked about both wholesale and retail rates trying to understand how much pressure vendors and buyers are feeling. Sellers spoke about rising costs, shrinking margins, and struggle to keep prices reasonable for customers.
Women vendors, many of whom run small stalls, got special attention. Banerjee listened to their concerns closely and assured them that schemes like Lakshmir Bhandar would continue to support them.
This surprise market walk wasn’t accidental. It was a carefully timed political move.
Banerjee has long built her image as someone rooted in Bengal’s soil. Accessible, simple, and connected to everyday people. By stepping into a local market without heavy ceremony, she reinforced that identity once again.
Her message was clear when she spoke briefly to vendors: she wasn’t there just as a Chief Minister, but as “one of them.” She framed rising prices as something affecting every kitchen and linked it to decisions taken by the central government.
According to her, protecting the “common man’s kitchen” has become a priority battle in this election.
The move also works as a visual response to the growing presence of the Bharatiya Janata Party in urban spaces. Markets, where daily life unfolds, are becoming political battlegrounds.
Just days before this market visit, Banerjee had already sharpened her attack.
At a rally in Bowbazar on April 24, she took aim at Narendra Modi and the BJP over what she described as a “stage-managed” moment involving jhal muri during a campaign stop in Jhargram.
She claimed that cameras and CCTV systems had been set up in advance and alleged that the snack was prepared beforehand for security reasons. According to her, the shopkeeper was handed ₹10, while she herself claimed she doesn’t even carry cash.
Her criticism didn’t stop there. Turning the moment into a political punchline, she mocked the BJP’s attempts to connect with voters through symbolic food gestures.
“They showed a ‘chai-wala’ earlier, now they are showing jhal muri,” she said, taking a swipe at past political narratives.
Then came a cultural counterattack. Banerjee spoke about food across India saying she eats dhokla, dosa, litti, thekua, sattu, vermicelli during Eid, and halwa before firmly adding that no one should “teach her religion.”
All of this is unfolding against a dramatic electoral backdrop.
The first phase of polling, held on April 23, recorded a massive 93.2% voter turnout, a number high enough for both the TMC and BJP to claim momentum.
With the second phase scheduled for April 29, the intensity is only expected to increase.
Banerjee, however, raised serious questions about the opposition’s confidence. She openly wondered how the BJP could appear so sure about results unless something was wrong.
Her remark about Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) added an edge to campaign. She questioned whether machines had been “fixed.”
At the same time, she framed the election as more than just contest for power. According to her, it is a vote about the rights of the people of Bengal.