Emulating Modi?

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee seems to be competing with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, not only for the electorate's affection but also in the number of foreign trips. In fact, she is so confident of getting enough of the first to return her to power in the state that she has scheduled a trip to the US right after the Assembly elections slated to take place in May or June next year. Banerjee has accepted an invitation from advocacy organisation US-India Business Council to visit the country in July 2016. This will be her sixth foreign trip as West Bengal's chief executive but it has only drawn derision from her opponents. Communist Party of India (Marxist) politburo member Mohammad Salim said Banerjee was "busy without business" while Bharatiya Janata Party's West Bengal chief Rahul Sinha said she had planned the trip in advance because she was not confident of getting re-elected.