Mamata Banerjee, black belt

Mamata Banerjee’s martial brand of politics has not just earned her a place in the Time magazine’s list of 100 most influential people, she has earned plaudits from the most unexpected of places: a black belt from Kukkiwon in South Korea, headquarters of the World Taekwondo Academy. Members of the institute are expected to travel to India in February and confer Banerjee the title of grand master in Taekwondo for her fighting spirit. With that, she will enter the elite league of people like US President Barack Obama and soccer star David Beckham who hold this honorary black belt. The joke doing the rounds is whether Banerjee will allow foreign direct investment in martial arts in Bengal after this award.