Climate talks: Indian-origin UK min in India

NEW DELHI: Alok Sharma, an Indian-origin minister in the UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Cabinet, on Monday arrived in New Delhi for two days of climate discussions with Indian leaders.

Sharma, the COP26 PresidentDesignate to lead the crucial UN climate talks, will meet senior Indian ministers, as well as leaders from business and civil society, to discuss strengthening the UK-India climate partnership and preparing for a successful COP26 summit later this year. India's expertise is expected to be of great value to global discussions on a clean energy transition as part of COP preparations, it said.

JAIPUR: The power tussle in the BJP seems to be getting more intense with former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje planning a rallies in April against the Congress government. The announcement was made at a meeting of Raje supporters in Kota on Sunday. They called for Raje’s return to active politics and to helm the party in 2023 to win the assembly elections.

Raje is attempting to return to active politics in the state through rallies and yatras. Recently, some supporters had announced Raje would undertake a religious yatra in Bharatpur region on her birthday on March 8, which was seen as a push to return to the centre-stage in Rajasthan politics.

State BJP president Satish Poonia said no such rallies have been planned by the party. He said the matter will be probed to find out who all are behind this programme.

While the rallies in April are targeted at the Gehlot government to highlight its failures, political analysts say the public meetings will be a show of strength by Raje to underscore her political clout in Rajasthan to the party leadership. Her supporters are active on social media with several Facebook pages dedicated to her and lobbying for her to be the BJP’s CM face for 2023. The rallies are planned in Hadoti region of south Rajasthan, which has Kota, Bundi, Jhalawar and Baran.