Assembly elections 2026 highlights: Mamata Banerjee questions PM Modi's jhalmuri stop, says ‘all drama’

West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee on Monday alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's stop to buy Bengal's favourite snack jhalmuri during poll campaigning in Jhargram was just a "drama".

"How come cameras were present when he made the unscheduled stop? The entire episode was scripted," she alleged at a poll rally at Murarai assembly constituency in Birbhumm district.

The prime minister on Sunday posted a video on his official X account in which he was seen buying jhalmuri, a popular Bengali street food made of puffed rice, green chillies, and spices from a nondescript shop in Jhargram.

The PM, who was accompanied by his security personnel, paid the shopkeeper for the snack. When the man denied taking the money, the prime minister insisted that he accept it.

Questioning the spontaneity of the entire episode, Banerjee said, "Cameras were placed there beforehand. The SPG (the force responsible for providing proximity security to the prime minister) had arranged for the whole thing."

"He was seen carrying a ₹10 note in his pocket. Is it believable? It's all drama," she claimed.

This blog is now closed. Keep following HT for all the updates.

Aam Aadmi Party convener Arvind Kejriwal met Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin on Monday and lauded his government's work in key sectors such as education, healthcare, and women's empowerment.

In a post on X, highlighting shared priorities, Kejriwal said both leaders have consistently learned from each other's governance approaches, while appreciating the transformative impact of Tamil Nadu's policies on its people.

"Honoured to meet with the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Thiru @mkstalin. We share a common vision for education, healthcare, and women's empowerment. We have always learnt from each other. I deeply appreciate the impact his dedicated governance has created in transforming the lives of the people of Tamil Nadu," Kejriwal posted.

This comes as Kejriwal is set to address election rallies in support of DMK on April 20 and 21, the Aam Aadmi Party said.

AAP has not put up any candidate for the Assembly poll race, choosing to support the Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA) instead.

Meanwhile, CM Stalin has been campaigning for DMK across the state, as he interacted with the people in Chennai's Anna Nagar Tower Park area on Monday during his morning walk campaign ahead of the upcoming Assembly polls. People, from all walks of life, thronged to greet the Chief Minister.

Earlier, Stalin conducted a house-to-house campaign in the Netthukuppam area of Thiruvottiyur, after campaigning in Hosur, Krishnagiri, Mylapore, Thousand Lights, and T Nagar constituencies.

Parallely, AIADMK-BJP alliance's campaign is also in full swing, with active participation from BJP's top brass, including PM Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and Union Minister Piyush Goyal.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday held a roadshow in the Modakurichi Assembly constituency in support of Kirthika Shivkumar and slammed the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam government, alleging corruption and nepotism.

He also expressed confidence in the prospects of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Tamil Nadu ahead of the polls on April 23. The counting of votes is scheduled for May 4.

The main contest is expected between the DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance, which includes the Indian National Congress, DMDK and VCK, and the National Democratic Alliance led by AIADMK with BJP and PMK as allies.

Actor-turned-politician Vijay is also set to make his electoral debut with his party TVK, which could turn the contest into a three-way fight.

Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) functionaries intensified their election campaign in the Tiruchirappalli East Assembly constituency, conducting door-to-door outreach in support of party chief Vijay. The campaign was led by TVK policy propagation joint secretary Loyolo Mani, along with party members including Raja and Sumangali Sampath, in the Subramaniyapuram Eri Karai Road area.

A campaign vehicle fitted with a large LED screen was used to display Vijay's election campaign visuals, attracting public attention.

Hundreds of supporters accompanied the campaign, blowing whistles and appealing to voters to support the party's "Whistle" symbol.

Loyolo Mani said that even if the other party distribute ₹10,000 per vote, their party's victory is certain.

He further stated that it is certain Vijay will become the CM and that the results on May 4 will reflect the people's decision.

Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday said in Kanniyakumari (Tamil Nadu) that the AIADMK leadership has "surrendered" to the BJP due to their "corruption".

"People of each state should run their own state. But, the BJP does not think like this... it believes it is one tradition, one language and one history," the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha said.

"BJP does not adhere to the Constitution... BJP wants to weaken the states."

Referring to the Manipur conflict, he said, "Look what they have done to Manipur, a peaceful state. They set fire to it. Hundreds of people died and a civil war is still carrying on."

Recalling the debates over women reservation and delimitation bills in the Parliament, Gandhi said BJP's real intent was to change the electoral structure of the country.

"There is only one way to describe what they were doing, as an anti-national action," he alleged.

"That is why we defeated the bill in the Parliament and we will continue to defeat any bill that tries to take away representation of anybody in the country," Gandhi added.

“The most important part of this election is to stop RSS and BJP from entering Tamil Nadu. I travelled from Kanyakumari to Kashmir. BJP spread hatred, they built an unequal India. They threatened our minority brothers and sisters,” Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi said on Monday.

Speaking at Nanguneri in Tamil Nadu, Rahul Gandhi said the RSS and BJP are “trying to infiltrate Tamil Nadu”.

He added, “AIADMK has had great leaders who have protected the idea of Tamil Nadu, but today's leaders are not like previous leaders. They are now compromised in the hands of the BJP… BJP cannot directly harm you, so they have their partner AIADMK to attack your identity, history, and language. We are protecting Tamil culture, history, language, and traditions.”

The Tamil Nadu assembly elections are scheduled to be held in a single phase on April 23, with the counting of votes scheduled for May 4. The main contest is expected between the DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance with Congress as a partner; and the NDA led by AIADMK, with the BJP and PMK as allies.

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: PM Modi travelling across Bengal for long, neglecting his official work, says Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge at rally in Cooch Behar.

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: In a sharp attack on PM Modi over his massive poll work in Bengal, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge asked if he wants to become West Bengal CM or remain PM.

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Monday alleged that the BJP is using their alliance partner AIADMK to "attack" the identity of Tamil Nadu.

Rahul Gandhi alleged that AIADMK has been "compromised in the hands of the BJP" and is no longer the party that once protected the identity of Tamil Nadu.

"In this election, they are trying to infiltrate the Tamil Nadu... AIADMK has had great leaders who have protected the idea of Tamil Nadu, but today's leaders are not like previous leaders. They are now compromised in the hands of the BJP," he said.

"BJP cannot directly harm you, so they have their partner AIADMK to attack your identity, history, and language. We are protecting Tamil culture, history, language, and traditions," he added.

Cornering BJP on the 131st Constitution Amendment Bill that aimed to increase the Lok Sabha seats, Rahul Gandhi alleged that the move came to reduce the representation of South and Northeast India, calling it an "attack on the idea of union of India."

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Monday hit out at the BJP over actions of the Income Tax officials at TNCC President K Selvaperunthagai's residence, accusing them of "resorting to atrocities to suppress opposition" ahead of the Assembly polls in the State.

In a post on X, Stalin sternly condemned the IT action against the TNCC chief, calling it a "conspiracy."

The CM alleged that the BJP is working under the "fear of defeat" and affirmed a befitting response in the polls.

"Strong Condemnation of the Conspiracy to Silence TNCC President Brother Selva Perunthagai's Campaign! Forgetting that India is a democratic nation, with just 48 hours left for the election campaign to conclude, the BJP government, united in the fear of defeat, is resorting to atrocities to suppress the opposition. The people of Tamil Nadu will give a fitting response to this," CM Stalin wrote in the post.

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: BJP MP Anurag Thakur on Monday exuded confidence in the BJP's victory in the West Bengal polls, stating that the people want "liberation from corruption, nepotism, and infiltration."

Speaking with ANI, Anurag Thakur said, "In Bengal, the voice of the people is one-sided that the BJP is coming on May 4, TMC is going. The people of Bengal want liberation from corruption, nepotism, infiltration, and the atrocities being committed on women, youth, and common citizens, and this time they want Mamata Banerjee's farewell".

Earlier, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said Mamata Banerjee is nervous as she realised that the people of Bengal will surely defeat her in the upcoming elections.

"Mamata Banerjee is nervous. She has realised that the people of Bengal will surely defeat her this time... Her support base is gone. The entire Bengal is moving towards a double-engine government, trusting PM Modi... Today, all the Sanatanis of Bengal are afraid of the pressure of infiltrators... As Mamata Banerjee watches this unfold everywhere, she is growing nervous. That is why she is speaking nonsense...," Pradhan told reporters.

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: Tamil Nadu Congress President K Selvaperunthagai on Monday alleged that due to the actions of "Hindui-speaking" Inconme Tax Department officials outside his Sriperumbudur, he could not attend and coordinate his political duties as Congress leader Rahul Gandhi arrived in the State for campaigning.

The action was carried out under the pretext of a search operation, he said in a post on X and termed it politically motivated.

The TN state Congress chief further accused Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) of misusing the central agencies.

Speaking with ANI, he said that from last night, "around 10 to 15 Hindi-speaking officials who didn't know Tamil" had gathered outside his house and remained there even after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's flight departed. He stated that he was unable to attend and coordinate the programme of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi due to their presence outside his residence.

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday alleged that the AIADMK leadership has "surrendered" to the BJP due to "corruption".

Addressing an election rally in Kanniyakumari, he claimed that now the AIADMK has become a vehicle for BJP's entry into Tamil Nadu.

"The RSS, which hates Dravadian ideology, also plans to rule Tamil Nadu," he alleged.

Underscoring federal principles, Gandhi said every state should have its own voice and representation.

"People of each state should run their state. But the BJP does not think like this. it believes is one tradition, one language and one history," the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha said.

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: K Annamalai campaigned in Chennai’s Mylapore for BJP candidate Tamilisai Soundararajan ahead of the Tamil Nadu elections.

He criticised the DMK government for failing on infrastructure, drainage, housing promises and alleged a rise in drug sales.

Annamalai said a BJP win was expected and said Edappadi K Palaniswami would become chief minister after the polls.

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram said the DMK-led alliance is confident of winning a comfortable majority in the upcoming Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.

"The door is firmly closed to the BJP. The people of Tamil Nadu will never accept the BJP. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have no credibility among the Tamil people," he told news agency ANI.

He also criticised AIADMK leader Edappadi K Palaniswami and said his remarks on women’s reservation were incorrect. The law was already passed in 2023, he said.

Chidambaram backed Rahul Gandhi’s claim that the BJP and RSS are trying to expand influence in Tamil Nadu. He said voters have consistently kept the party out and will do so again.

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: The Supreme Court has asked for an urgent report from the Kolkata HC on complaints that tribunals handling West Bengal’s voter list update were not working properly.

The complaint said lawyers are not being allowed and only online applications are being accepted.

The court also said only people whose appeals are approved can vote, while those with pending cases cannot. (PTI)

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: West Bengal will vote in two phases on April 23 and 29 to elect a new assembly. After the publication of post-adjudication electoral rolls in the state, it is now clear that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise has led to a disproportionately high exclusion of Muslim voters in the state, a trend which has not been seen in any state which has undergone SIR so far and has released district-level data (to be sure, none of the other states went through the adjudication process). Given the fact that Muslims are unlikely to vote for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), this has led to an unprecedented weaponisation of the Muslim vote question in these elections. Read full report

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: West Bengal BJP candidate from the Kharagpur Sadar Assembly constituency, Dilip Ghosh, on Monday called the India Political Action Committee (I-PAC) a "means to promote corruption" in the State following the arrest of its director Vinesh Chandel in a money laundering case.

Ghosh told reporters, "I-PAC should not remain. It increases corruption in politics here. I-PAC has become a means to earn money by promoting corruption."

Slamming the Trinamool Congress ahead of Assembly elections, the BJP leader said, "As soon as elections come, TMC remembers the employees, women, and the youth. The Central Pay Commission was implemented, and DA increases were implemented on time after Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power. Employees are harassed here."

I-PAC Director Vinesh Chandel was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on April 13, under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, in connection with the alleged coal pilferage case.

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: As the first phase of the West Bengal assembly elections draws near, Union minister G. Kishan Reddy on Sunday expressed his confidence that the BJP will win all seven seats in Asansol.

West Bengal polls will be held in two phases on April 23 and April 29, with the results to be declared on May 4.

"This district has seven seats, and I am fully confident that the BJP will win all seven seats. The entire public wants change; they have seen the TMC for fifteen years. The hooliganism, mafia rule, and the infiltration of Bangladeshi infiltrators in the TMC are prevalent throughout Bengal. Now the public wants development, they want change. This is the right time to bring about change...," the Union Minister told ANI on Sunday.

The Asansol Lok Sabha constituency includes Pandabeswar, Raniganj, Jamuria, Asansol Dakshin, Asansol Uttar, Kulti and Barabani. It is considered politically significant due to its location in the state's industrial belt.

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: The TMC has alleged that Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren and his wife were denied permission to land their helicopter in West Bengal’s Jhargram on Sunday due to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s unscheduled ‘jhalmuri’ stop. Soren and MLA Kalpana Soren were kept waiting for hours and eventually forced to return to Ranchi because of Modi’s “extended snack break and photo-ops”, the Party said.

“Because the ‘Pradhan Sevak’ decided to extend his stay in Jhargram to eat Jhalmuri, Jharkhand Chief Minister Shri Hemant Soren and his wife and MLA Smt. Kalpana Soren was denied permission to fly their chopper into Jhargram while Modi was present,” the TMC wrote on X.

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: Senior TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee urged Ratna Debnath, the BJP candidate from Panihati and mother of the RG Kar rape-murder victim, to appeal to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure that the Aparajita Bill, which is awaiting the President's nod, sees the light of day.

Addressing a gathering after a roadshow in favour of party candidate Tirthankar Ghosh at Panihati in North 24 Parganas on Sunday, the TMC national general secretary said the proposed legislation seeks to ensure time-bound punishment for rape convicts within 50 days.

The Aparajita Women and Child (West Bengal Criminal Laws Amendment) Bill was passed in the assembly in September 2024.

Targeting the BJP, Banerjee said that a party "which garlands convicts... cannot deliver justice," and accused it of double standards on women's safety.

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh visited the historic Sri Subramanya Swami Temple in Tiruchendur, Tamil Nadu, on Monday to offer prayers and seek blessings. The visit to the coastal shrine forms part of the Union Minister's schedule in the southern state.

Singh, in a post on X, shared, "Prayed at the sacred Sri Subramanya Swami temple in Tiruchendur (Tamil Nadu). Feeling blessed to experience the divine energy of this Temple."

The BJP senior leader and minister had on April 19 held a roadshow in support of the BJP candidate Ananthan Ayyasamy from the Vasudevanallur Assembly Constituency.

During the roadshow, Rajnath Singh made a series of strong allegations against the DMK government, particularly on corruption, law and order, and fiscal management. He also urged voters to choose the NDA, describing it as the only alternative to the INDIA bloc.

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee held her first community outreach programme in her Bhabanipur constituency since filing her nomination on April 8, using the platform to sharpen her attack on the BJP over deletion of names from electoral rolls and alleged attempts to divide people on religious and caste lines.

At the meeting, organised at Ladies' Park in her constituency on Sunday, Banerjee described elections as a "festival of democracy and not autocracy" and urged people from different communities to remain united ahead of the assembly polls.

Bhabanipur has emerged as one of the most keenly watched contests of the 2026 assembly polls, with Banerjee, a three-term MLA from the seat, locked in a direct battle against Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari.

The contest has acquired added significance as it is being seen as a rematch of the 2021 Nandigram battle, where Adhikari had defeated Banerjee after quitting the TMC and joining the BJP.

Assembly elections 2026 LIVE: A worker of the Trinamool Congress was injured in a firing incident in the Gosaba region of South 24 Parganas district late on Sunday in poll-bound West Bengal.