Prime Minister Manmohan Singh leaves tomorrow to participate in these summits at a time when some political parties are taking sharp turns over presidential candidates.
When asked whether the prime minister will be tensed about the domestic political issues while attending the meetings, Union Environment and Forests Minister Jayanthi Natarajan told reporters: "Absolutely not. This is a political democracy. The Congress is more than a century old. The prime minister is well-entrenched in his second term. We honour our international commitments."
The ruling United Progressive Alliance today decided to field finance minister Pranab Mukherjee as its candidate for the July 19 presidential election, amid opposition from key ally Mamata Banerjee to his nomination.
Natarajan, who will be India's principal negotiator in the Earth Summit, to be held in Rio de Janeiro on June 20-22 , refused to take any further political questions over the issue. Read the full report here.
Source: BS Reporter, Business Standard, New Delhi.
