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Indo-US nuclear deal : Political shadow-boxing in full swing

	July 31, 2006

Approval of the Indo-US civilian nuclear deal by the US House of Representatives has given rise to stepped-up shadow-boxing between the UPA Government and the Left parties supporting it from outside. The Left parties want that the country should express, in one way or the other, its view on the parameters of the agreement to be followed by the Manmohan Singh Government. Initially, they wanted a ‘sense of Parliament’ resolution to be adopted which would define the parameters of the agreement. But there were no takers for the proposal in the United Progressive Alliance. Now the Left parties are willing that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh make a statement reflecting the sense of the House. They do not want the statement to be just reflective of the Government viewpoint, but are demanding that it should follow a discussion in Parliament on the nuclear deal and must incorporate all the Left concerns.





Left dilemma



After initial indications last week that the Left parties may soften their stand on the nuclear deal, they appear to have again stepped up their offensive to protect what they call the country’s interests in the nuclear deal, which will have long-term strategic and security implications.



The Indo-US nuclear deal and its implications were the main issues of discussion at the two-day CPI(M) politburo meeting held in New Delhi at the weekend. A politburo member said : “We do not approve of the deal. We have given our views in writing to the Government. We feel that the Government is conceding more than it should to the US. It amounts to surrendering our sovereignty.



“The benefits of the deal for India are hazy, while the costs are clearly evident”, he argued. “How can the US Congress discuss and take decisions on India’s nuclear policy ? The Indian Parliament should be doing that,” he said.



The CPI(M) is waiting to hear Prime Minister Manmohan Singh speak on the issue in Parliament next week. “But a speech from the Prime Minister would not be enough. We want a Parliamentary consensus on the deal. There should also be an extended debate where all political parties get a chance to air their views,” he said.



On its part, the Congress has let it be known that a Parliamentary declaration - reflective of the consensus - would not be acceptable, given its wider implications for the Government’s credibility in international engagements. In their view, seeking anything beyond the PM’s assurances in the two Houses could amount to a vote of no confidence in the UPA regime.



Last week, the CPI(M) had issued a note giving details of discrepancies between what Manmohan Singh said in July 2005 and amendments made by the US committees. The note had nine objections to the changes inserted by the committees.





Not budging an inch : Left



A day earlier, at a meeting on Friday, July 28, the four Left parties said that they would not budge an inch from their earlier stated position that sense of Parliament on the nuclear issue should be expressed. CPI general secretary A.B. Bardhan said one possibility is that Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee reads out a statement on behalf of the House incorporating the parameters of the agreement.



Asked about the Congress fear that the Left’s move could give a handle to the BJP, a senior Left leader said,”Sense of Parliament should include the Opposition. It cannot be the ruling party and its supporters alone.”



After the meeting, CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat said : “Much water has flown down the Potomac (river in Washington DC) since Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s last July statement in Parliament.



“What is the use of waiting for the final legislation? Already, many changes have been made as is clear from the Bill passed by the House of Representatives. On all this, a clear view has to come out. It is a matter of vital national importance.”



Admitting that confusion was created by CPI leader Gurudas Dasgupta’s statement saying that his party would not be party to any resolution and PM’s suo motu statement was enough, a senior Left leader claimed that not much importance should be attached to Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee’s remark that the resolution could lead to fall of the Government.



“Mukherjee has done so 4-5 times in the past on other issues also. Let it be. We are not going to be stampeded by this threat. It is not our solemn duty to let Government survive even as it continues to strike a deal behind our back,” he asserted.





Tough talking by Government



There are reports that there was some tough and plain talking by the Government to make the Left parties subdue their demands on the nuclear deal. Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee, one of the interlocutors with the Left, is reported to have made it clear that the Government was simply not going to accept a potentially embarrassing resolution. “It was conveyed that a resolution was simply unacceptable,” the Minister is reported to have told mediapersons.



UPA’s political managers including Parliamentary Affairs Minister Priyaranjan Dasmunshi, Suresh Pichauri, and V. Narayanaswamy reportedly were present at the discussion between Pranab Mukherjee and leaders of the Left parties in Parliament. Sources say that Mukherjee made it clear that in case the Left parties went ahead and moved a resolution, then “I am not in the Government and the Government would not be there.”



Top political sources said the Government stand was formulated following reports that the Left parties were seeking to bring the resolution that would effectively constrict the Government’s negotiating space. The Government’s view was that the resolution would be tantamount to a no-confidence move.



The Bharatiya Janata Party was among the parties, which could join hands in getting such a resolution passed. BJP leaders, however, later indicated that they were distancing themselves from the resolution. Senior leaders said such a move might not be necessary following Dr. Singh’s statement.



At a regular briefing, CPI (M) Politburo member and MP, Sitaram Yechury, said they were consulting other political parties and asking them to share their concern on the “shifting of goalposts” in the nuclear deal.





No new conditions acceptable : PM



Government of India will not accept any new conditionalities and obligations in the civilian nuclear deal with the United States and the nation’s strategic programme was out of its realm. This was asserted by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during Question Hour in the Lok Sabha on July 26. He said : “We will never compromise in a manner which is inconsistent with the provisions of the joint statement of July 18, 2005.” Dr. Singh said the Government was open to discussions on the deal, and offered to make a suo motu statement on the issue.



The Prime Minister’s intervention came after repeated demands for a statement from him as he let Union Minister of State Anand Sharma field questions.



Responding to apprehensions about India being forced to concede a lot more than what had been made public, Sharma said the final bilateral agreement would be signed only after the U.S. amended the 1954 Atomic Energy Act. “The amendment of its legislation for an India-specific waiver is a pre-condition.”



Making his second statement of the week on the issue on Thursday, July 27, the Prime Minister asked the critics of the agreement to wait for its final shape. He admitted that the Bill before the Committees of the House of Representatives and the US Senate contained elements that are of concern to India. But he said, the United States Government has to ensure that what is contemplated is within the parameters of last year’s July 18 statement.



“We have made very straight representations to the U.S. Government. Let that [legislative] process be completed. I will come before this House, if there is any departure from what I have said. Then, the country, as a whole, will have the full opportunity to make up its mind,” he said in the Rajya Sabha during Question Hour.



Dr. Singh was responding to the concern expressed by Sitaram Yechury (Communist Party of India - Marxist) that the Bill passed by the House of Representatives stipulated that India has to first negotiate its agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) before passing the final agreement for transfer of civilian nuclear technology to India.



This stipulation violated the assurance given earlier by the Prime Minister that “before voluntarily placing the civilian facilities under the IAEA safeguards, we will ensure that all restrictions on India have been lifted,” Yechury said.



Dr. Manmohan Singh told Yashwant Sinha (Bharatiya Janata Party) that the Bill passed by the House of Representatives was not the “end product” and advocated patience, as India had not “signed anything.”



The U.S. commitment was to get waiver permission from Congress. “That process is not complete. Let it be completed. Once it is completed, we will then determine whether there are any elements in it which go beyond what we have committed in the July 18 statement.”





Critics of various hues coming together



The Prime Minister’s statement ruling out any compromise on the July 18, 2005 Indo-US nuclear deal came at a time when critics of the agreement, within and without the Congress, are coming forward to raise their voices. Among those who wanted Rajya Sabha chairman Bhairon Singh Shekhawat to accept a resolution expressing the sense of the House, were Natwar Singh of the Congress, a former External Affairs Minister, Yashwant Sinha of the BJP, another former external affairs minister and Digvijay Singh of the Janata Dal (United), a former Minister of State for External Affairs.



In a related statement, Natwar Singh said on July 27 that the nuclear deal should not be treated as a party matter, but as a national issue. He said the Manmohan Singh Government should make every effort to obtain a national consensus on the nuclear deal with the United States.



Senior BJP leader L.K. Advani said, the Indo-US nuclear deal will close all strategic options for the country. Speaking in Bhubaneswhar on July 27, he said, “It may help the US, but it is not in India’s interests.” Advani said Parliament should give a clear direction to the Government in this sensitive matter.



Former Prime Minister V.P. Singh said in New Delhi on Thursday, July 27, that the nuclear deal with the United States was not in India’s security or national interests. He said India is abandoning its independent route to civilian nuclear power generation. He said with the deal, India will become dependent on nuclear fuel from the United States, rather than using thorium for its fast breeder reactors.



Left for cutting off military ties with Israel



The Left parties found another handle to attack the Manmohan Singh Government’s foreign policy when they demanded that India should cut off its military ties with Israel in view of what they called Israeli war against the Lebanese people. Addressing protesters in New Delhi who had gathered under the banner of the Committee against Israeli aggression, CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat said on July 27 that it was the duty of the Government to stop buying Israeli arms. (India is the largest buyer of Israeli arms).



Saying that the Israeli attacks on Lebanon have the full backing of the United States, Prakash Karat called for an immediate halt to the “barbarities.”