Mamata Banerjee: The woman standing between Modi and a Lok Sabha majority

Mamata Banerjee still dominates West Bengal and is a possible prime minister candidate if a loose alliance of opposition parties can band together and defeat Modi

Santu Adhikari scavenges with scarred hands through the rubble of a Tata Motors factory where he once hoped to work. But the plant was torn down before it was finished, and the 28-year-old now spends his days among its ruins in this field outside Kolkata, hunting for scrap iron to sell.

Adhikari blames his grim predicament on one of India’s most powerful regional politicians: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who triumphed in state polls after leading farmer protests here in the province’s fertile Singur district to drive away the company a decade ago. Narendra Modi swooped in and brought