India, June 22 -- Mamata Banerjee, founder of the Trinamool Congress, former chief minister, terror of the CPM and nemesis of Narendra Modi, is today reduced to a street protester in the city she once commanded absolutely. Recently, she was denied permission by the police to protest post-poll attacks on Trinamool Congress workers and leaders following the BJP's sweeping victory in the April-May assembly elections.

With still faithful old guards Firhad Hakim, Madan Mitra, Derek O'Brien, and Kalyan Banerjee at her side - and conspicuously absent most of the fresh faces who had won assembly seats on TMC tickets barely weeks before--she seemed a forlorn figure as if she sensed the new MLAs had already sensed which way the wind was blowing....