The Hindu : Front Page : Why Sonia mum on nuclear deal, asks Karat

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Apr 09, 2009
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Front Page

Front Page

Why Sonia mum on nuclear deal, asks Karat

K.P.M. Basheer

VAIKOM (Kottayam district): Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Prakash Karat on Wednesday wondered why Congress president Sonia Gandhi kept mum on the Indo-U.S. nuclear deal during her campaigning for the present Lok Sabha elections.

Mr. Karat, in his campaign speech for the Left Democratic Front candidate for Kottayam, K. Suresh Kurup, at this historic town, said he had hoped that Mrs. Gandhi, who was on a campaign tour of several constituencies in Kerala on Wednesday, would explain to the people how they would benefit from the controversial nuclear deal. But Mrs. Gandhi had skipped the nuclear deal, which had been projected as a step to bring electricity to all houses in the country. It had now become clear that the power generated using the nuclear machines to be imported from the U.S. would cost at least Rs.12 a unit and that only American companies would stand to gain from it. If voted to power, Mr. Karat promised, the Third Front would renegotiate and redo the deal.

Mr. Karat claimed that in Kerala, West Bengal and Tripura, the Left had followed alternative economic policies which had turned in good results. For instance, Kerala’s Achuthanandan government could put an end to the farmers’ suicides in Wayanad district.

He said the UPA had ceased to exist as many parties had abandoned it.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Front Page