As tomato prices in India crossed the INR 100 ($1.34) per kg mark, Congress parliamentarian Kapil Sibal on Wednesday took aim at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for using the slogan "Good days are coming."
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) used the slogan during its 2019 parliamentary poll campaign.
Pointing to the current prices of petrol, diesel, and tomatoes, Congress politician and former federal minister Sibal called the spike in prices a “signal milestone."
Earlier, Congress Spokesperson Pawan Khera said that the prices of daily commodities are sky-rocketing.
"It appears as though there is Section 144 in the kitchen that you cannot keep more than four tomatoes or onions," Khera told reporters.
Under Section 144 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), a gathering of four people is not allowed in public places.
The sharp rise in tomato prices in major cities of south India is being attributed to heavy rainfall since the first week of November, which has damaged the tomato crop.
People in Kerala state’s Kottayam city have to pay INR 120 ($ 1.61) per kg of tomatoes, and those living in places like Ernakulam – INR 110 ($ 1.48) per kg, Thiruvananthapuram – INR 103 ($1.38) per kg, Palakkad – INR 100 ($ 1.34) per kg, Thrissur – INR 97 ($ 1.30) per kg and those in Wayanad and Kozhikode are buying them for INR 90 ($ 1.21) per kg.
With tomato prices crossing the INR 100 ($1.34) per kg mark in most cities in southern India, netizens are flooding social media with memes and jokes.
Sharing a photo of Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, one user captioned it with: "I don't buy Tomato, I order my food from Zomato."
Zomato is an Indian multinational restaurant aggregator and food delivery company founded in 2008.
One user advised the government to regulate the prices so that both consumers and farmers can benefit.
Comparing the prices of petrol, diesel, and cooking oil with tomatoes, a user posted a photo of Bollywood actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui and quoted his dialogue in Hindi: "Let me see who is the bigger devil than me."
The user was referring to a line by Siddiqui in a Bollywood movie named Kick in which he plays the main villain, while Salman Khan played the protagonist. Salman Khan's character was named the Devil in the movie.
Other users blasted the government using various references in Indian culture.