Didi skipped Modi’s big day in 2014 but coming this time

KOLKATA: West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee indicated on Tuesday she was likely to attend the swearing-in ceremony of PM Modi on Thursday as it was a matter of “constitutional propriety”.
Banerjee, one of the most strident critics of Modi and BJP, said she had been invited to the programme and had spoken to several opposition CMs before taking a call, suggesting that it was a collective decision. “An invitation to attend the swearing-in ceremony of the PM reached me today,” said Banerjee. “I spoke to a few people after that. I also spoke to a couple of chief ministers. Since this is a formal invite for a ceremonial occasion, we will try to attend.... This is also a question of constitutional propriety and protocol and as chief ministers, we always try to respect that and attend (the ceremony),” she added.
Banerjee had skipped Modi’s swearing-in during his first term in 2014, choosing to send her trusted lieutenants, Amit Mitra and Mukul Roy (the latter has since joined BJP), to attend the ceremony.
Her first formal meeting with the PM happened in March 2015, a full 10 months after he assumed office. She has, since then, met the PM a couple of times more.
Party sources feel her decision to attend the swearing-in could be an attempt to de-escalate the tension and political violence that have kept Bengal on edge since the results were declared on May 23. BJP’s stunning gains have also prompted a soul-searching in the Trinamool brass whether rabid opposition to the Centre had any impact on voters.