Opinion - Letters to the Editor   

Nuclear deal

It is with dismay that we witness the callous manner in which the Manmohan Singh government is making the confusion over the nuclear deal worse. There seems to be a conspicuous lack of political direction in the UPA, especially after the Left parties withdrew support. Although the Prime Minister’s integrity cannot be questioned, the same cannot be said about his commitment to the common man’s priorities. The Indo-U.S. nuclear deal is not the common man’s top priority today, nor is it democratically possible to move forward on this issue. The government should have waited to win the vote of confidence before sending the draft agreement to the IAEA. The “indecent haste,” as the editorial, “A highly improper step” (July 11) points out, smacks of a leadership that acts on knee-jerk impulses.

Ugandhar Manthina,

Visakhapatnam

Whatever the pros and cons of the nuclear deal, there is truth in the Left parties’ accusation that the UPA government is more committed to the U.S. President than the Indian people. In order to get the deal through before the elections in the U.S., the UPA government is playing an opportunistic political game. It has made its enemies friends and vice-versa. Each passing day, the Congress leaders make contradictory statements. They mislead the people about IAEA rules. They do not respect Parliament either. A deal made thus cannot be for the country’s good.

Mohit Kumar,

Mysore

For almost a year, the nuclear issue has been hotly debated in and outside Parliament. But nothing has been done to educate the people about its benefits or otherwise by the government or the parties opposing it. One wonders how, when the country is facing unprecedented inflation and unabated price rise, the government is so obsessed with a deal which, if clinched, will meet only a small percentage of our energy requirement.

S. Vanmeekanathan,

Chennai

The lack of co-ordination on the nuclear deal at the highest level has put External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee in an unenviable position. The senior most Minister’s assurance that the government would submit the draft safeguards agreement to the IAEA only after seeking a trust vote in Parliament should have been given due respect. Mr. Mukherjee has been the UPA’s pointman in many crises but seems to have been left to fend for himself now.

Salin Thomas,

Kottayam

Seshagiri Row Karry,

Hyderabad

Vasanthakumar Sambasivan,

Kollam

Who the government wants to befool, saying the deal will not lead to kowtowing to the U.S., one wonders. In whose interest will the U.S. President give annual certification to our nuclear programme? Will not subjecting our nuclear reactors to IAEA scrutiny make us subservient to the U.S.’ whims? The UPA government has lost the moral right to continue in power.

P. Ravikumar,

Mahabubabad

It is an irony that the government is being accused of being more concerned with the nuclear deal than the people’s interests. The deal is also in the interests of the people. The government not going ahead with the deal will not bring down inflation as it is a global phenomenon and will decline in due course.

R. Rajamanickam,

Chennai

We should remember that the nuclear deal is not just a deal with the U.S. It has the potential to open more avenues with many other countries. It is a great opportunity for India. With this deal, India will get access to the most advanced civilian nuclear technology.

Tanvir Salim,

Canton

Ram Krishnamurthy,

Dunlap, Illinois

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