Delhi Police Accused of Blocking Protesters, Cartoon Turns Tomato Shopping Into Political Satire

 This political cartoon takes a humorous look at the reported attempts to stop people from reaching a BJP protest in Delhi. It shows a young woman being escorted by a group of police officers, who appear determined to keep her away from the demonstration.

The joke comes from the woman’s explanation. She tells the officers that she is carrying tomatoes because she has sent someone to buy them for her. She insists that she is not going to the protest. In other words, an ordinary shopping trip has become suspicious enough to invite police attention.

The cartoon’s caption makes the political context clear: “Delhi: Attempts to stop people from reaching the CJP protest.” The contrast between the caption and the woman’s innocent-sounding explanation creates the satire. The police appear so focused on preventing people from joining the demonstration that even someone claiming to be out for groceries becomes part of the scene.

The tomato reference adds a familiar everyday detail. Tomatoes are a common household purchase, but their prices have also become a recurring symbol of the cost-of-living pressures faced by Indian families. Here, however, the main joke is not about inflation; it is about the difficulty of distinguishing a genuine protester from an ordinary citizen when authorities are trying to control access to a political gathering.

The cartoon raises a broader question about the balance between public order and the freedom to assemble and protest. Police may impose restrictions for security or crowd management, but such measures can become controversial when people feel they are being prevented from exercising their democratic rights.

Through a simple visual gag, the cartoon turns a routine errand into a pointed comment on policing, political demonstrations and the treatment of citizens in public spaces.

Cartoon by - Kirtish Bhatt

BJP’s Viksit Bharat 2047 Vision Faces a Reality Check Over Development Timelines

The BJP’s vision of a “Viksit Bharat” (Developed India) by 2047 is the target of this political cartoon, which questions whether the country can achieve its ambitious development goals within the promised timeframe.

The cartoon shows a man holding a placard marked “2047,” representing the government’s long-term vision for India. A woman standing at the doorway challenges his timeline with a pointed remark: “You keep talking about development. There isn’t that much time. Make it 2035–36.” Her words turn a grand national ambition into a demand for quicker, more visible results.

The humour lies in the contrast between a distant deadline and the impatience of ordinary people. The year 2047 marks the centenary of India’s independence, and the Viksit Bharat vision imagines the country becoming developed by then. But the cartoon asks a simple question: should citizens have to wait until 2047 to see meaningful improvements in their everyday lives?

The woman’s demand to bring the deadline forward to 2035–36 is not necessarily a literal policy proposal. It is a satirical way of expressing impatience with promises that stretch far into the future. People judge development through what they experience today: better roads, reliable public services, employment opportunities, affordable living costs, and improved access to education and healthcare.

The cartoon does not dismiss the idea of a developed India. Instead, it pokes fun at the gap between announcing a distant national goal and delivering tangible progress in the present. Long-term planning matters, but citizens also want milestones they can see and benefits they can feel.

Cartoon by - Kirtish Bhatt

RBI Repo Rate Hike Targets Inflation, But Common Man Feels the EMI Pressure

 

The Reserve Bank of India’s decision to raise the repo rate becomes a sharp and humorous economic joke in this cartoon. The stated aim of a repo rate hike is to control inflation by making borrowing more expensive and reducing excessive demand in the economy. But for an ordinary borrower, the impact can feel very different.

The cartoon shows a common man trying to kill a fly sitting on his head. The fly represents inflation, constantly irritating him with the rising cost of everyday life. Instead of using a small object to swat it, the man reaches for a huge brick labelled “REPO RATE.” The visual exaggeration creates the central joke: the weapon being used to fight inflation is so heavy that the person using it may end up hurting himself.

The paper marked “EMI” in his hand adds another layer to the satire. When interest rates rise, borrowing costs can increase, and borrowers with loans linked to floating interest rates may face higher EMIs or a longer repayment burden, depending on how their lenders pass on the change.

That creates the dilemma captured by the cartoon. Inflation puts pressure on household budgets, but measures taken to control inflation can also create financial pressure for people who already have home loans, personal loans or other borrowings.

The cartoon does not question the need to control inflation as much as it pokes fun at the uncomfortable side effect of the remedy. The common man wants the inflation “fly” gone, but the giant repo-rate brick comes with its own price.

With simple imagery, the cartoon asks a familiar economic question: when fighting inflation, who ultimately feels the pain of the cure?

Cartoon by - Kirtish Bhatt

Rahul Gandhi Climbs Barricades During Anti-SIR Protest, Inspiring a New Barrier Challenge

 The cartoon takes a humorous look at Rahul Gandhi’s dramatic climb over police barricades during the Opposition’s protest against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. On October 6, INDIA bloc MPs marched from Parliament towards the Election Commission headquarters in New Delhi, demanding action over alleged irregularities in the SIR process and calling for Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation. Police stopped the march with barricades, but Rahul Gandhi climbed over them before the protest later moved to the Akashvani Bhawan premises. 

The cartoon takes that moment and imagines its hilarious consequence. The headline reports that Rahul Gandhi climbed the barricades during the Opposition march. The central character then delivers the punchline: “A high-level meeting has been called to make new barricades that nobody can climb over.”

The cartoon imagines officials responding to Rahul Gandhi’s feat by treating the barricade as the problem. Instead of asking why the protesters were determined to cross it, they are supposedly preparing for an even more formidable version. The exaggerated “high-level meeting” makes the situation even funnier, suggesting that considerable administrative energy may now be devoted to designing a barricade capable of defeating one determined politician.

The visual also captures the unusual spectacle of a senior opposition leader physically climbing a police barrier during a major political protest. Rahul Gandhi’s barricade-climbing moment quickly became one of the defining images of the demonstration.

Cartoon by - Kirtish Bhatt

From Detention to SIR: A Voters’ Journey with No Clear Destination

 

This cartoon takes a satirical look at the growing political controversy around the Election Commission and the protests demanding accountability from the Chief Election Commissioner.

In the first frame, protesters are packed into a detention vehicle after demonstrating at Jantar Mantar. Their simple question — “Where are you taking us?” — captures the uncertainty and frustration often felt when protesters are detained during political demonstrations. The vehicle itself carries the word “DETENTION”, making the situation clear without needing a long explanation.

But the cartoon then takes an unexpected turn. The next vehicle is marked “SIR”, a reference to the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. This time, the people running behind the vehicle are asking, “Where are you leaving us?” The visual joke lies in the similarity between the two situations: whether people are being taken away in a detention vehicle or being moved into the complicated process of SIR, the cartoon suggests that ordinary citizens are left wondering where exactly they stand.

The Jantar Mantar sign anchors the cartoon in the setting of public protest, while the two buses create a visual contrast between detention and the electoral-roll revision exercise. The humour is deliberately simple, but the underlying point is sharper: when political decisions and election-related processes become confusing, citizens can feel as though they are being taken along a route whose destination has not been properly explained.

Cartoon by - Kirtish Bhatt

If Gandhiji were alive in 2026, what would happen to him? - Cartoons

On the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti, this cartoon series imagines a playful but pointed question: If Mahatma Gandhi were alive in 2026, what would he be doing in today’s India? October 2 marks Gandhi Jayanti, commemorating Mahatma Gandhi’s birth anniversary. In 2026, the country is observing his 157th birth anniversary, with official programmes once again highlighting his ideas of truth, non-violence, simplicity and public service.

The cartoons bring Gandhi into the world of smartphones, social media, political protests and contemporary public life. Instead of simply presenting him as a historical figure frozen in textbooks and portraits, the series asks what his methods of protest and communication might look like in the digital age.

In one cartoon, Gandhi is imagined sitting at the charkha while someone holds up a smartphone and asks him to look at a photograph in a WhatsApp group. The familiar symbol of self-reliance is humorously placed alongside modern digital communication.

Another cartoon imagines Gandhi taking part in a protest, walking with a placard while a journalist asks whether he is “breaking the rules.” The contrast between his traditional non-violent protest methods and the language of contemporary public demonstrations forms the central joke.

A third cartoon plays with the modern political and religious landscape, with Gandhi responding when someone asks whether he has taken the name of Ram and whether he has visited Ayodhya. The reference connects Gandhi’s well-known association with “Ram” to contemporary debates surrounding Ayodhya and religion.

The final cartoon returns to Gandhi’s historic use of fasting as a form of protest. Here, he is shown sitting on a hunger strike while someone suggests that he join their political party and become a minister.

Together, the cartoons ask how Gandhi’s familiar tools — the charkha, non-violence, protest, fasting and moral persuasion — might translate into the realities of 2026. The humour comes from placing an iconic figure of India’s freedom movement inside the very different political, social and technological environment of today.

Cartoons by - Kirtish Bhatt

Cartoon on SIR Controversy: Voter Asks for His Deleted Vote Back

 The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls has triggered a wider debate over the process of updating and verifying voter lists across India. The Election Commission of India has undertaken the exercise to revise electoral rolls, while its voter-services portal allows electors to search their names, check electoral-roll details and seek corrections or enrolment.

This cartoon looks at the controversy from the perspective of an ordinary voter. The headline in the cartoon refers to allegations of irregularities in SIR. Two men are shown discussing the situation while pointing towards a notice asking people to vote. The central character makes a simple but pointed statement: “There is neither election, nor he is candidate. He is a voter, sir. He is asking for his vote back after it was cut in SIR.”

The satire focuses on the difference between being eligible to vote and actually finding one's name on the electoral roll. The cartoon imagines a voter whose name has been removed during the revision process and turns that situation into an absurd question: if the voter has no candidate to choose from because his electoral status itself has become uncertain, how does he get his vote back?

Cartoon by - Kirtish Bhatt

Gadkari’s Flying Buses: When Potholes Turn Roads Into Launchpads

 A satirical take on India’s pothole-ridden roads, where a bus appears to take flight after hitting a massive pothole. The cartoon humorously imagines Union Minister Nitin Gadkari becoming the man responsible for “flying buses,” while a passenger points out that buses are not flying at all—the broken roads are launching them into the air. The cartoon highlights the persistent problem of potholes and poor road conditions through sharp political satire.

Cartoon by - Kirtish Bhatt