Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday paid homage to the indomitable spirit of women, and took to Twitter with a series of posts about recent purchases made by him. As people across the world celebrate International Women's Day on March 8, countless leaders across party lines have taken to social media platforms to put forth their greetings.
"Saluting our indomitable #NariShakti on International Women's Day! India takes pride in the many accomplishments of the women of our nation. It is our Government's honour to be getting the opportunity to work towards furthering women empowerment across a wide range of sectors," Modi tweeted.
In a follow up post he said that women were playing a "leading role" in India's efforts to become Aatma Nirbhar. "Today, I bought a few products that celebrate women enterprise, creativity and India’s culture," he explained.
In follow-up tweets the Prime Minister shared links for the items he had purchased, most of which are now out of stock. Some on social media are convinced that it is the PM's posts that had led to the items becoming sold out.
In a series of posts, the Prime Minister promoted several handmade items, including the Assamese Gamusa that he has been photographed wearing on multiple occasions.
"You have seen me wear the Gamusa very often. It is extremely comfortable. Today, I bought a Gamusa made by various self-help groups of Kakatipapung Development Block," he said sharing a screengrab of the screen with the item details.
This was not an isolated purchase. In a lengthy series of tweets, the Prime Minister outlined each of his purchases with a screengrab and some insight into the product he had selected.
He purchased several other clothing items including a hand embroidered Shawl made by artisans of the Toda Tribe of Tamil Nadu, a traditional shawl from Nagaland and a Khadi Cotton Madhubani Painted Stole. Not only that, going by the Prime Minister's posts, he has also purchased a a Gond Paper Painting, a handmade Jute File Folder from West Bengal and a classic Palm Craft Nilavilakku made by women based in Kerala.
And while some cheered the welcome "promotion of indigenous products" eagle eyed netizens were quick to remark upon the selection of handicrafts and the states with which they were associated. For many, the fact that several of the items came from poll bound states was an indication that this was a political maneouver.
The different points of views have quite naturally led to another Twitter debate, even as others chime in occasionally with tweeted receipts to prove that they too have purchased the items.
