"It's better to sell vegetables than sitting in the Municipal Corporation office without work," she said.
When she became the deputy mayor of Gaya town in Bihar, after having swept its streets for decades, Chinta Devi felt the 'city of salvation' has, finally, presented her with her own deliverance.
After nearly two years in office, she finds herself back on the streets, selling vegetables as a mark of protest against the disrespect she has been made to allegedly put up with.
She asked, "What is the point in my being deputy mayor if I am not kept in the loop about the goings on in the municipal corporation?" Devi, who worked for 35 years as an employee (sweeper) of the Gaya Municipal Corporation, was elected deputy mayor of Gaya in December 2022, two years after her retirement.
Talking to media persons on Tuesday, Devi said, "I am very upset with the attitude of the administration of the Gaya Municipal Corporation. I am not even invited for meetings held in the Corporation. Officials don't even inform me about the schemes being run by the Corporation in the city." She alleged that she has not been paid salary of the deputy mayor for the last several months.
"This is the reason that I decided to sell vegetables on the streets of Gaya. It's better to sell vegetables than sitting in the Municipal Corporation office without any work," Devi said.
Everyone was surprised to see Devi selling vegetables at Kedar Nath market on Tuesday and a huge crowd gathered around her.
"I can earn money by selling vegetables although I get my pension as a retired employee of the municipal corporation. But I am not being provided any of the facilities by the corporation for which I am entitled to as the deputy mayor," she claimed.
Despite repeated attempts, senior municipal officials of Gaya were not available for their comments on the charges levelled by Devi.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)