kolkata

IIE DIGITAL DESK ; Kolkata, August 25: The controversy surrounding Sita Devi, the woman whose family was recently seen heating milk on a Kolkata pavement, took a new political turn on Tuesday after she met Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari. The meeting came days after a video of Sita Devi and her family went viral following the Chief Minister’s visit to the Park Street area, triggering a wider debate over poverty, livelihood and the condition of economically vulnerable families in the city.

Sita Devi had come into the spotlight after the pavement incident drew public attention and sparked political reactions. Following the controversy, her meeting with the Chief Minister has now added a fresh dimension to the issue, with the ruling political leadership seeking to highlight the family’s difficulties and the assistance being extended to them.

After meeting Sita Devi and her family, Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said that she had expressed her confidence in both the Chief Minister and the Bharatiya Janata Party. According to him, Sita Devi alleged that people had been sent to her on behalf of Mamata Banerjee and that attempts were being made to offer her money in exchange for speaking against the BJP.

The Chief Minister’s remarks have intensified the political confrontation surrounding the incident. What initially emerged as a human-interest story involving a family struggling with basic livelihood issues has now become part of a broader political battle between the BJP and the Trinamool Congress.

The meeting was also seized upon by BJP leaders to criticise the Mamata Banerjee-led political establishment. BJP general secretary Locket Chatterjee said that Sita Devi had approached the Chief Minister seeking assistance and that Suvendu Adhikari had stood by her during her difficult circumstances.

Locket Chatterjee launched a sharp attack on Mamata Banerjee while referring to the condition of poor people in West Bengal. She alleged that over the past 15 years, the state government had pushed ordinary people towards extreme poverty and had failed to provide adequate support to economically weaker sections of society.

According to Locket, the issue was not simply about a single family or an isolated incident but reflected the larger economic hardships faced by poor people. She alleged that those living on the margins had become even more vulnerable and claimed that the government had failed to create sufficient space and opportunities for them.

Taking a further swipe at Mamata Banerjee, Locket questioned the political significance of attempting to project oneself as a “hero” after years of alleged neglect of poor families. Her remarks were clearly aimed at turning the pavement incident into a wider political criticism of the state government’s policies and its approach towards poverty.

The controversy began after the family came into public focus following the Chief Minister’s recent inspection of pavements in the Park Street area. The sight of Sita Devi’s family heating milk on the pavement attracted widespread attention and raised questions about the living conditions of vulnerable families in Kolkata.

The incident quickly moved beyond social media and became a political talking point. Opposition leaders and ruling party representatives began reacting to the issue, with competing claims emerging over who was responsible for addressing the family’s difficulties.

Sita Devi’s meeting with Suvendu Adhikari has now given the BJP an opportunity to emphasise its claim that it is prepared to support people facing economic hardship. At the same time, the allegations regarding attempts to influence Sita Devi politically have added another layer to an already contentious issue.

The claims made by the Chief Minister and Locket Chatterjee are political allegations, and the account attributed to Sita Devi would require independent verification. Mamata Banerjee and the Trinamool Congress have not, in the material available, provided a response to the latest allegations regarding the alleged attempt to influence Sita Devi.

The episode has therefore developed from a simple account of a family struggling on the streets into a politically charged debate over poverty, governance and political responsibility. With the BJP highlighting Sita Devi’s meeting with the Chief Minister and using the incident to attack the Trinamool Congress, the controversy is likely to remain a talking point in West Bengal’s political landscape.

For Sita Devi and her family, however, the central issue remains their livelihood and access to basic support. The political exchanges surrounding their situation have brought their circumstances into the public spotlight, while the latest meeting with the Chief Minister has further intensified the debate over how governments and political parties respond to families living on the economic margins.