No wine and dine

Trinamool Congress chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who is still non-committal on her support to the United Progressive Alliance (UPA)’s Presidential nominee Pranab Mukherjee, has decided to keep the UPA guessing till the last moment. Banerjee remained absent from the meeting of the UPA allies on Saturday. Instead, she sent her representative, Railway Minister Mukul Roy. Again, she has chosen to skip the dinner being hosted by UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi on July 18, the eve of the Presidential elections. She excused herself, saying she would be busy with the Martyrs’ Day celebrations on July 21. She still claims she is not boycotting the dinner, and her party workers will be arriving in Kolkata from July 18 onwards. But it is yet unclear whether Banerjee wants to be seen on the same dais, as an integral ally of the UPA any longer.