Kolkata, April 3 In the West Bengal elections, fish has become a central issue, with the Trinamool Congress trying to appeal to Bengali pride, while the BJP is wary of being seen as opposing the "mache bhate Bangali" sentiment.
From giant katla being displayed during rallies to ilish, pabda, and chingri featuring prominently in political speeches, fish has emerged as an unlikely but potent symbol in West Bengal's assembly elections, turning food habits into a fierce contest over identity, culture, and who truly represents the "real" Bengali.
The old Bengali phrase "mache bhate Bangali," which means a Bengali is defined by the consumption of fish and rice, has become the central theme of this election for the parties.
The TMC has sought to exploit this sentiment by arguing that the BJP, which it associates with Hindi speakers and vegetarianism-promoting politics in North India, is culturally different from West Bengal and could potentially restrict the consumption of fish, meat, and eggs if elected.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee emphasized this point during a rally, saying, "They will not let you eat fish. You cannot have meat, you cannot have eggs, you cannot speak in Bengali. If you do, they will call you Bangladeshi," thereby linking food, language, and Bengali identity into a single political argument.
This allegation has allowed the TMC to shift the campaign focus away from issues such as anti-incumbency, corruption, and unemployment towards a more comfortable position – Bengali sub-nationalism. In this context, fish is no longer just a meal; it is a symbol of Bengali pride.
The party's social media accounts have posted images of delicacies like ilish bhapa, pabda jhal, chingri malai curry, and kosha mangsho after Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced he would spend 15 days in West Bengal for campaigning.
One TMC post said, "Welcome tourists to West Bengal. Enjoy our delicious food." This was a subtle jab at Shah, mixing sarcasm with culinary nationalism.
Political analyst Maidul Islam said that the TMC sees West Bengal "essentially as a Bengali project".
"Within this Bengali project, fish-eating is a crucial element. When fish markets are attacked elsewhere, or leaders from Hindi-speaking areas express disapproval of fish, it becomes a campaign issue. The TMC is arguing that they are the organic party of Bengalis and therefore naturally aligned with Bengali food habits," he said.
This argument has resonated because West Bengal's relationship with fish goes far beyond just food.
In West Bengal, fish plays a significant role in many important aspects of life – from a baby's first rice-eating ceremony and gifts given to a groom's house before a wedding to the meal served after mourning a death.
According to World Bank data, West Bengal consumes 8.36 lakh tonnes of fish annually, nearly twice the national average, while fish and meat together account for almost a fifth of household food expenditure in the state.
The BJP insists that the TMC is deliberately creating fear. Its leaders point out that there are no plans to ban fish or meat in West Bengal and accuse the ruling party of trivializing the election by focusing solely on food.
However, the BJP is now facing the challenge of publicly demonstrating its support for fish.
Bidhannagar BJP candidate Sharadwat Mukherjee recently campaigned carrying a 5 kg katla fish through neighborhoods, assuring voters that the BJP would never interfere with Bengali food habits.
In Pandaveswar, BJP candidate Jitendra Nath Tiwari filed his nomination papers accompanied by a "fish procession," with supporters carrying baskets of fish while he himself held a large one.
"If promoting West Bengal's culture is a drama, I am proud of this drama," Tiwari said.
This spectacle proved politically revealing. For years, the BJP has promoted vegetarianism in many Hindi-speaking states. In West Bengal, however, the same party is now campaigning with fish in hand.
Political analyst Suman Bhattacharya said that this shows how deeply the TMC narrative has penetrated.
"The perception that the BJP is against fish and non-vegetarian food has become so strong that party leaders now have to publicly eat fish and campaign with it. That itself shows how their vegetarian politics elsewhere didn't work in West Bengal," he said.
State BJP president Samik Bhattacharya has also been equally emphatic.
"There is no question of banning fish. Bengalis will eat fish and Biharis will eat mutton. If anyone tries to stop me, I will resist," he said, while accusing the TMC of spreading misinformation.
The BJP's discomfort stems partly from events outside West Bengal.
Remarks by Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Kumar Sinha about restricting the open sale of meat near schools and religious places, along with repeated controversies in BJP-ruled states over meat shops, fish markets, and vigilante attacks, have fueled the TMC narrative.
In January, a vendor was allegedly assaulted by right-wing activists for selling chicken patties near a religious gathering in Kolkata. Earlier, there had been controversies over temporary meat bans during Navratri and over fish markets in Delhi.
For many Bengalis, these episodes reinforce the fear that a more homogenised, North Indian, vegetarian-first cultural model could one day be imposed on West Bengal.
A Kolkata-based Indologist said fish occupies a civilisational space in West Bengal.
"For Bengalis, fish is not merely food. It is memory, ritual, and identity. To challenge that is to appear alien to West Bengal itself. And in Hindu scriptures, there is no mention of vegetarianism being linked to religious identity," he said.
Kaushik Maiti of a Bengali nationalist outfit Bangla Pokkho said, "Fish is very much part of Bengali identity. But the BJP wants to impose the vegetarian food culture of North India, we are opposed to it."
As the campaign intensifies, West Bengal's electoral battle is increasingly being fought not merely over voter turnout, jobs, corruption, or governance, but over Bengali identity. In this battle, the humble fish has become a central issue in West Bengal's political landscape.