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Tuesday, Aug 14, 2007
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“Strategic programme not compromised”

New Delhi Bureau

Manmohan makes statement on nuclear deal amid protests by NDA and UNPA, walkout by Left

— Photo: PTI

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh addresses the Lok Sabha on Monday.

NEW DELHI: The Indo-U.S. civil nuclear deal issue disrupted proceedings in the Lok Sabha on Monday, but Prime Minister Manmohan Singh made his statement in the afternoon amid vociferous protests by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the United National Progressive Alliance (UNPA).

Later, in the Rajya Sabha, he chose to table the statement in view of the loud protests by the entire Opposition and Left parties after which the House was adjourned for the day.

The day’s proceedings underlined the United Progressive Alliance Government’s political isolation on the issue. While the Left parties were the first to walk out of the Rajya Sabha in protest soon after the Prime Minister began to speak, their party members heard Dr. Singh out in the Lok Sabha till the fag end and did not join the NDA and UNPA in picketing the well of the House and raising slogans.

The Left members raised their voice of protest in the Lok Sabha when Dr. Singh reached the last paragraph and walked out of the House.

The NDA and UNPA, however, continued with their siege of the well as Speaker Somnath Chatterjee proceeded with the morning’s business that could not be taken up due to two quick adjournments.

In his prepared remarks, the Prime Minister assured the House that the nuclear agreement would not compromise India’s strategic programme, its three-stage civil nuclear energy programme or its advanced R&D programmes. On the issue of testing, he said the agreement did not in any way affect India’s rights. “There is nothing in the agreement that would tie the hands of a future Government,” he said.

Acknowledging that the 123 agreement only granted India “forward-looking language” for dual-use items needed for reprocessing and enrichment, Dr. Singh said he expected the Nuclear Suppliers Group to adapt its guidelines “without conditions” and allow India to access “all dual-use technologies” associated with civil nuclear energy.

The Prime Minister said India was not just looking forward to nuclear cooperation with the United States but intended to carry forward its cooperation “with major nuclear suppliers such as Russia and France.”

Pandemonium

In the morning, pandemonium prevailed with Samajwadi Party members trooping into the well at the very start of the proceedings demanding withdrawal of the deal as it was not in the interests of the country. Adding to the din was the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which wanted to raise the Goa issue and Rashtriya Janata Dal members who sought to draw attention to the flood situation in Bihar.

Repeated assurances by Mr. Chatterjee and Leader of the House Pranab Mukherjee that Dr. Singh would make a statement later proved futile and the House was adjourned within minutes. When it met again at 11-30 a.m., there was no let-up in the protest and the Speaker adjourned the House for lunch after asking Mr. Mukherjee to “arrange for the presence of the Prime Minister at 2 p.m. to make the statement.”

However, as the Chair refused to allow Leader of the Opposition Jaswant Singh to speak before the Prime Minister, the protests began. The first to stage a walk-out were the Left parties followed by the Samajwadi Party and then the NDA benches, resulting in the adjournment of the House for the day. At the end of the day, there were indications that the NDA was trying to enlist the Left’s support for its Parliamentary strategy.

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