Photo of villagers listening to Amit Shah's rally on LED screen unleashes Twitter storm

Tribune Web Desk
Chandigarh, June 11

A photo of villagers in West Bengal, who gathered to watch Home Minister Amit Shah’s virtual rally on a TV appended to metal poles surrounded by bamboo shrubs, has caused a storm on social media. 

At least 15,000 big LED screens and more than 70,000 smart TVs were installed across West Bengal by the BJP for connecting with party workers down to the booth level for the virtual rally. The state has an estimated 78,000 polling booths, according to PTI. The digital rally was held shortly after Cyclone Amphan had torn into West Bengal, killing 72 people and “completely devastating” two districts in the state.

On Twitter, the Congress and the AAP criticised the BJP for holding the rally amid the coronavirus pandemic and when “it did not have enough money to send migrants home.”

BJP National General Secretary (Org), B L Santhosh, however, tweeted: “People in remote villages of West Bengal listening to @AmitShah during #BJPJanSamvad . This is the reach  @BJP4Bengal has achieved thru’ relentless pursuit for last 5 years.People want better days.” 

Here is what BJP leaders said about the viral image:

A Congress leader asked why the BJP could spend on LED screens and not migrant welfare: