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Bengal polls
Image Credit: Smriti Irani's Facebook page

After Mamata Banerjee's show, Smriti Irani rides scooter in Bengal

| @indiablooms | Feb 27, 2021, at 04:06 am

Kolkata/IBNS: A day after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's show as a pillion rider on an electric two-wheeler to protest against the fuel price hike, Union Minister Smriti Z Irani was seen riding a scooter in the alleys of suburban Kolkata as a part of Bharatiya Janata Party's motorcycle rally on Friday.

Smriti Irani visited Bengal as a part of campaigning for the upcoming assembly polls in the state where the BJP is making an attempt to come to power.

The Union Minister for Textiles took part in the bike rally in Baruipur-Sonarpur area in the South 24 Parganas district, which is a Trinamool Congress (TMC) stronghold.

The rally, part of the BJP's state-wide "Poriborton Yatra", was led by Irani along with BJP MP Roopa Ganguly and Agnimitra Paul.

They began the campaign in Gangajoara near Garia on the party's "rath" - a bus decked up with slogans and photos of BJP leaders.

After covering a short distance, the minister got down from the ''rath'' and started riding a scooter, wearing a black helmet.

She had to make occasional stops as fervent supporters gathered, almost choking the narrow road.

"I feel happy to be a part of the campaign by the BJP workers in Bengal. Today I participated in a 'poriborton yatra' (a rally for change) in Bengal's South 24 Parganas," Irani wrote in Bengali in a Twitter post sharing glimpses of her scooter ride.

This comes after Mamata Banerjee on Thursday travelled in an electric two-wheeler to her office Nabanna in a symbolic protest against the fuel price hike.

Banerjee was seen sitting in the backseat of an electric scooty which was driven by her colleague in the government, Firhad Hakim.

The new methods of campaigning come as West Bengal gears up to go for an eight-phase Assembly Election starting March 27.

West Bengal will vote in eight phases on Mar 27, Apr 1, 6, 10,17,22,26,29.

Besides Bengal, elections will also be held in Assam, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry.

The counting of votes will take place on May 2.

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