The Hindu : Front Page : Left hopes government will not proceed with talks on nuclear deal

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Oct 10, 2007
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Front Page

Left hopes government will not proceed with talks on nuclear deal

Vinay Kumar

UPA-Left committee talks cordial, meeting again on October 22: Pranab

— Photo: V.V. Krishnan

SHOW OF UNITY: After Tuesday’s meeting of the UPA-Left committee meeting on the nuclear deal in New Delhi, a relaxed A.B. Bardhan, CPI leader, holds up the hand of Railway Minister Lalu Prasad, watched by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee. Enjoying the camaraderie are (from left, in the middle row) CPI leader D. Raja, Union Minister Prithviraj Chavan, CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury, Union Minister Kapil Sibal and Forward Bloc leader Debabrata Biswas. Behind them are CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat and Union Minister Sharad Pawar.

NEW DELHI: The Left parties on Tuesday made it clear to the government that they stood firm in their objection to operationalising the India-U.S. civilian nuclear deal.

After the fourth meeting of the United Progressive Alliance-Left committee on the deal, the Left parties appeared hopeful that the government would not go ahead with any formal negotiations on India-specific safeguards with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

“We do not think that any formal negotiations will begin with IAEA before this committee comes out with its findings. Our talks are going on, I don’t think anything will be operationalised,” Communist Party of India general secretary A.B. Bardhan told journalists after the meeting that lasted for more than two hours.

The government’s response to the outcome of the meeting was guarded. “The members shared in detail their perception of various aspects of the cooperation agreement between India and the U.S. Discussions were also initiated on the implications of the nuclear agreement on foreign policy and security cooperation,” External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said, reading out a brief prepared statement after the meeting.

Mr. Mukherjee, who is the convener of the 15-member committee, said it would meet again on October 22. “All members of the committee took part in the meeting, which was held in a cordial atmosphere,” he added.

Railway Minister and Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Lalu Prasad showed his exuberance, holding hands with Mr. Bardhan and Mr. Mukherjee. They smilingly waved at the cameras in a symbolic show of unity.

“The government is not going to fall; there will not be any mid-term election,” Mr. Prasad told journalists. His assertion reflected the wish of the UPA allies, which are against precipitating the matter.

Discussions on: Biswas

All India Forward Bloc general secretary Debabrata Biswas said the Left parties were participating in the deliberations of the committee and discussing all issues and their concerns.

“We will meet again on October 22 and nothing is going to happen till then,” he said when asked whether the government promised that it would put on hold negotiations with the IAEA on India-specific safeguards.

Union Ministers A.K. Antony, P. Chidambaram, Sharad Pawar, Kapil Sibal, T.R. Baalu, Saifuddin Soz and Prithviraj Chavan were also present at the meeting, which was held at a time when IAEA chief Mohammed ElBaradei is on a visit to the country. He is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday.

Mr. ElBaradei will also meet Mr. Mukherjee and Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon.

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