The Hindu : Opinion / Letters to the Editor : On nuclear deal

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Saturday, Sep 15, 2007
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On nuclear deal

This refers to the statement issued by two former judges of the Supreme Court and a former judge of the Bombay High Court that the executive cannot act independently of Parliament on the Indo-U.S. nuclear deal (Sept. 13). The country is indebted to them for coming out with such an unambiguous statement. In a vital issue of great importance to national security, leaders should shed their prejudices and stand corrected.

R. Vaidyanathan,
Bangalore

* * *

The learned judges have quoted all relevant provisions in the Constitution and, in their view, any action taken to implement the nuclear deal without Parliament’s approval is unconstitutional. The executive should bear this in mind while denying Parliament the power to deal with the implementation of the 123 agreement.

M.P.R. Nair,
Kochi

* * *

Since the Constitution was promulgated, India has entered into scores of treaties, big and small, with several countries. But one wonders with respect to how many of them, parliamentary ratification was sought. The argument advanced in the article would lead to the proposition that none of the treaties is binding on India.

S.R. Adige,
New Delhi

* * *

It is doubtful if several treaties of critical nature such as the Shimla Agreement between India and Pakistan and the Indo-Sri Lanka agreement went through the process of getting a formal ratification by Parliament. If not, have our governments been functioning in an unconstitutional manner all along? The matter warrants a wider discussion.

P.S. Desikan,
Chennai

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