A high-voltage emotional drama unfolded in Siuri on Friday morning when BJP candidate Jagannath Chattopadhyay went out for his election campaign. In a startling turn of events, Shantarani Saha, the mother of local TMC Booth President Rabi Saha, broke down in tears upon seeing the BJP candidate. Expressing deep-seated resentment against the current state government, the elderly woman vented her frustrations right in the middle of the street at Ward No. 18 of Siuri Municipality.

The sight of a TMC leader’s mother crying before a political rival has put the ruling party in a tight spot. While Shantarani Devi’s outburst suggested a disconnect between the party’s grassroots workers and their families, her son, Rabi Saha, was quick to dismiss the incident. “My mother is not in her right mind. She doesn’t know what she is saying,” the TMC booth president remarked, trying to downplay the embarrassment. However, the BJP camp was quick to highlight this as proof of widespread public anger against the TMC administration, even reaching the homes of its own workers.

Simultaneously, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee launched a scathing attack on the Central Government’s decision to slash excise duty on fuel. Speaking to the media, she questioned the impact of this move, saying, “They have already hiked prices by thousands of percentage points. What difference will a small tax cut make now? Will the prices really go down for the common man?” Mamata alleged that the Center had “looted” the public first and is now performing a “drama” before the elections. From the personal grievances in Siuri to the macroeconomic battle over fuel, Friday remains a day of intense political friction in Bengal.