Modi show in Kolkata hit by ‘GasGate’, turnout doubts and hawker boycott

The BJP’s much-hyped ‘mega’ Modi rally in Kolkata on Saturday ran into a swirl of controversies even before Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the gathering, with a row erupting over cooking gas use, local hawkers boycotting the event and questions being raised about the actual turnout. 

While the party had initially projected a crowd of around five lakh people, BJP sources later told this correspondent that food had been arranged for about two lakh attendees, and police officials estimated the turnout at 1.5 lakh at most.

With Modi scheduled to address the gathering at the sprawling Brigade Parade Ground aka Maidan, the event was projected by the BJP as a major show of strength in West Bengal. However, questions emerged over both the scale of the turnout and the arrangements made for feeding supporters.

The party had initially claimed the rally would attract around 5 lakh people. But later in the day, BJP sources told this correspondent that food arrangements had been made for roughly 2 lakh attendees. Police sources at the venue estimated the turnout to be closer to 1.5 lakh at most.

Even that number was hard to confirm, with people leaving in droves with Modi still speaking, and floating crowds sheltering under trees to gain some relief from the scorching sun.

A noticeable section of the crowd had also travelled from outside West Bengal, including neighbouring states such as Jharkhand, according to party workers and attendees present at the venue. The rally triggered a sharp political exchange with the state’s ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) after images circulated showing BJP workers cooking large quantities of food near the venue.

The controversy comes amid reports of long queues for cooking gas cylinders across parts of Kolkata and surrounding districts, prompting the TMC to accuse the BJP of hypocrisy. BJP leader Sajal Ghosh dismissed the allegation and instead blamed the state government for any shortage.

“We got cylinders from our homes — not from the party,” Ghosh told reporters. “Mamata and her criminals created this shortage. Modi ji said there’s no crisis — it’s a TMC conspiracy. They’re just suffering from gas problems themselves.

”Supporters at the rally said some district leaders had arranged meals such as mutton rice, chicken biryani and egg rice for party workers who had travelled long distances to attend the event.

A senior police officer present at the venue said cooking at such scale would normally require gas cylinders. “You cannot burn enough wood for 1.5 lakh people here,” the officer said, adding that authorities could look into how the food was prepared.

The TMC quickly seized on the issue, with party spokesperson Kunal Ghosh putting out social media posts showing photographs of residents waiting in long queues for gas cylinders, and accused the BJP of indulging in lavish meals while ordinary people struggled.

“People wait hours for cylinders but BJP feasts lavishly,” he wrote in an X post. The controversy quickly gained traction online, with the hashtag ‘GasGate’ trending locally. Security arrangements also triggered friction at entry points.

Acting under instructions from the Special Protection Group (SPG), police barred supporters from carrying bags inside the rally grounds and confiscated them at the gates.

However, the organisers had not arranged any formal storage facility for the belongings, leaving many attendees anxious about whether they would be able to retrieve their bags after the rally.

“How do we trust we’ll get our bags back after the meeting?” one supporter said while waiting outside the gates.

Adding to tensions, hawkers who normally operate around the Maidan refused to sell food or water inside the rally premises. Their boycott follows an alleged incident during a recent ‘Gita Path’ event, where a Muslim hawker was assaulted for allegedly selling non-vegetarian food.

Asith Kundu, a patties seller in the area, said hawkers had collectively decided not to serve customers inside the rally venue. “One of us was beaten up for selling non-veg patties. They could have ignored him or bought vegetarian ones, but they assaulted him,” Kundu said.

“Though this is our only income, we will not sell anything inside the venue premises. They must come outside if they want to buy.”A police officer confirmed that authorities had requested hawkers to at least sell drinking water, but they refused.

Water supplies were instead arranged through the Kolkata Municipal Corporation and private vendors, though officials warned supplies might run short if the crowd stayed for long. Despite the controversies, the rally attempted to foreground Bengali cultural imagery.

The stage featured large backdrops depicting the Dakshineswar Temple, Kolkata’s iconic yellow taxis and Darjeeling’s tea gardens.Organisers deployed around 10,000 party flags, 500 flex banners and dozens of large cut-outs across the Brigade Parade Ground, creating a sea of BJP branding. While the party did not disclose the overall budget for the rally, the scale of the publicity material drew criticism from political opponents. 

In Kolkata, flex printing typically costs between Rs 8 and Rs 20 per square foot depending on thickness, suggesting the large number of banners and hoardings could together run into several lakh rupees.

TMC leaders questioned the scale of expenditure on publicity and mobilisation, while supporters complained about inadequate arrangements.Party insiders indicated significant ‘resources’ were spent mobilising supporters from districts and neighbouring states.

At least eight special trains reportedly carried about 30,000 workers from Malda, Uttar Dinajpur and Dakshin Dinajpur alone.One attendee, Manoj Rai from Jharkhand, said he had travelled overnight with hundreds of others.

“We arrived at Howrah at 2.00 am and rested at a camp beside the Rail Museum. We were served rice, navratna dal and cabbage vegetable,” he said. “Later we heard some leaders arranged non-veg food, but we did not get any.”

Rai questioned why the party could spend heavily on banners and mobilisation but not provide better food to supporters who had travelled long distances.

As evening fell and crowds slowly began to disperse, the event left behind not just a show of political mobilisation but also a fresh round of accusations between Bengal’s two principal political rivals.