Counting trends across West Bengal on Monday triggered celebrations among BJP workers as the party moved ahead in key contests, with supporters marking the occasion through food-based celebrations at counting centres and party offices.
BJP Leads in West Bengal
As trends from the Election Commission of India showed the BJP having won or leading on over 200 seats, well past the majority mark in the 294-member West Bengal Assembly, workers and supporters gathered outside counting centres across Kolkata and other parts of the state to celebrate the emerging mandate.
Traditional Bengali Meals Served
At the BJP office on Murlidhar Sen Lane in Kolkata and at party offices in Salt Lake, cadres were seen serving traditional Bengali meals including fish curry, rice, dal, fish head curry, and katla fish curry. Videos from these locations showed supporters sitting together and sharing food as counting progressed.
In Alipore, celebrations included chicken biryani, fish preparations, and jalebi, with supporters joining informal gatherings as early leads firmed up. Across Kolkata, workers distributed sweets such as rosogolla, laddoos, and sandesh, while some groups shared mishti doi as part of the festivities.
Jhalmuri Gains Political Significance
Jhalmuri was widely distributed in paper cones outside counting centres, with women workers and supporters participating in street celebrations and singing traditional chants such as jhal legeche as trends strengthened. The snack had gained political prominence during the campaign after Prime Minister Narendra Modi made an unscheduled stop at a roadside stall in Jhargram and ate jhalmuri, a moment later used in campaign messaging.
Celebrations Extend to Delhi
The celebrations were not limited to West Bengal. In Delhi, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and her Cabinet ministers marked the BJP’s performance with jhalmuri and rosogolla. BJP MP Manoj Tiwari celebrated at his residence by cutting a rosogolla cake with his family as trends indicated a strong lead in West Bengal. BJP leader Virendra Sachdeva marked the party’s performance with mishti doi.
At the BJP headquarters in New Delhi, food arrangements continued through the day, with a steady flow of party workers and visitors. The menu featured a wide spread prepared in batches, including aloo poori, poha, sandwiches, jalebi, dal tadka, kadhi pakoda, parwal aloo, rice, papad, along with sweets such as rasgulla and mishti doi. Refreshments including lassi and fresh fruits were also served, with preparations scaled to cater to several hundred people.
Political Context of Food Celebrations
The food-based celebrations in West Bengal were linked to campaign narratives in which the Trinamool Congress had alleged that a BJP government could restrict dietary habits in the state, a claim the BJP had rejected during campaigning, arguing that food practices would remain unchanged.
Historical Precedents of Food in Celebrations
NDA’s Litti Celebrations in Bihar
When the NDA crossed the 200-seat mark in the Bihar assembly polls last year, celebrations broke out across BJP and Janata Dal (United) offices. Buckets of jalebi and litti chokha were distributed among supporters in Patna, while drums echoed outside JD(U) offices. At the BJP headquarters in Delhi, preparations were made for a Bihar-style celebration menu, including sattu paratha, baingan chokha, jalebi, and litti chokha for party workers. In Mokama, similar food preparations including rasgulla and litti chokha were reported at the residence of RJD leader Veena Devi.
Jalebi Gesture During Haryana Assembly Elections
In 2024, after the BJP’s strong performance in the Haryana Assembly elections, party workers sent jalebis to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s office in Delhi as a symbolic gesture of electoral defeat.
Rasmalai Jibe During Maharashtra Civic Elections
During the Maharashtra civic elections, BJP MPs PC Mohan and Tejasvi Surya used references to rasmalai on social media after result trends showed a strong performance for the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance. The exchange followed earlier remarks by Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray, who had used the term rasmalai in a political jibe. PC Mohan posted an image of rasmalai on X, while Tejasvi Surya described the outcome as a sweet rasmalai victory.
