PM Modi, Mamata lead colourful road shows in Kolkata amid cheering crowd

Kolkata on Tuesday was witness to multiple highoctane and colourful road shows by top leaders one by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and two such by Mamata Banerjee his archpolitical rival in West Bengal even as campaign frenzy reached its zenith ahead of the last phase of Lok Sabha electionsIn his first ever road show in Kolkata PM Modi led a vibrant cavalcade from the base of Netaji Subhas Chandra Boses statue at Shyambazar Five Point Crossing that terminated at the ancestral residence of Swami Vivekananda on Simla Street in North Kolkata with people gathering in impressive numbers to greet the leader en routeThe political extravaganza was organized in support of BJP candidate from the Kolkata Uttar seat Tapas Roy and his counterpart from the Dum Dum constituency in the northern fringes of the city Silbhadra DuttaAhead of the event the PM visited Maa Saradas residence at Bagbazar and paid homage to the Holy Mother who was the spiritual consort to the 19th Century Hindu mystic Ramakrishna ParamhansaModi also paid his tribute to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose at his landmark statue at Shyambazar before starting his road showAccompanying the PM were prominent state BJP leaders Sukanta Majumdar and Suvendu Adhikari who were seen standing on both sides of the PM in his openhooded vehicleThe road show began at around 710 pm and slowmoving vehicles took about an hour and a half to cover a distance of a little over two kilometres to reach their destination at Vivekanandas residence where he paid homage to the spiritual leaderModi stood atop a decorated vehicle resplendent in saffron hues and adorned with flowers images of the PM and BJPs election symbol the lotusAs the convoy made its way through the bustling streets Modi waved at the crowd which gathered on both sides of the barricaded Bidhan Sarani At various points in the route the PM greeted people with folded handsWomen supporters dressed in saffron saris also participated in the colourful processionChants of Jai Shri Ram and Phir Ek Baar Modi Sarkar reverberated in the air as the vehicle passed by with many onlookers capturing the event on their mobile phonesHouses along the route were brightly lit and decorated with flowers creating a festivallike atmosphere amid the blowing of conch shells and chanting of hymnsEarlier in the day Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee held two road shows in support of Trinamool Congress candidates in Dum Dum and the two Kolkata seats covering on foot nearly nine kilometres on a sultry afternoonBoth shows registered a significant turnout of people even as Banerjee during her characteristic brisk walk greeted them with folded hands and at times even reached out to the excited crowd waiting on roadsides behind security cordonsIn the first road show the TMC supremo walked from Birati Banik More to Airport gate number two on Jessore Road a distance of nearly four kilometres along with party leaders and workersThe road show in Dum Dum Lok Sabha constituency was held in support of the TMCs veteran leader and candidate Saugata Roy who is seeking a fourth consecutive term from the seatApart from Roy ministers Sujit Bose and Chandrima Bhattacharya also accompanied Banerjee in Dum Dum while in south Kolkata city mayor and minister Firhad Hakim walked along with herIn the second road show Banerjee walked from Entally Market in the northern part of the city and to Ballygunge Phari in south Kolkata nearly five kilometers awayThis rally was organized in support of TMCs Kolkata Dakshin candidate Mala Roy who is seeking a second term from the constituency and Kolkata Uttar candidate Sudip Bandyopadhyay fighting for a straight third term from the seatThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever