Discontent against the BJP is now openly expressed in the city of the Taj Mahal. In the last state election in 2017, all nine seats in Agra were won by the BJP, an extra-ordinary result given that the city was hit hard by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's shock demonetization move announced on November 8, 2016, just months before it voted on 11 February 2017. Apart from tourism, much of Agra has traditionally been employed in the unorganized sector, producing leather and shoes - an industry that worked on cash transactions - so voting for the BJP in 2017 was an act of faith.