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New Delhi: Faced with deep divisions and threat of disintegration, the United National Progressive Alliance, yesterday failed to take a categorical decision on the contentious Indo-US nuclear deal.
The UNPA has resolved to consult an expert, probably former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, wait until Prime Minister Manmohan Singh further clarifies their doubts and agrees for a national debate before taking any stand.
The UNPA, a ginger group of six unattached regional parties, has emerged key to the survival of the Congress party-led United Progressive Alliance government in view of the Left Front threat to withdraw their crucial support to the government over the nuclear deal.
Senior UNPA leaders including Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav, Telugu Desam Party chief N. Chandrababu Naidu, Indian National Lok Dal supremo Om Prakash Chautala, Asom Gana Parishad president Brinda Goswami and Jharkhand Vimukti Morcha head Babulal Marandi were closetted for nearly four hours at a meeting yesterday.
Although their deep differences came to the fore at the deliberations, they proclaimed to be united on the issue after the meeting.
The UNPA decision to defer any final decision is seen as its desire to keep its options open and see whether the Left Front actually goes on to translate its threat to withdraw support.
Embarrassment
The Left Front, which sustained the UPA government with its outside support for the past 50 months, is scheduled to meet in the capital today. According to indications, the Left may also not make the crucial formal announcement today and may delay it until July 8 until Prime Minister Singh returns form the meeting of G-8 countries being held in Japan.
"It will be an embarrassment if we announce withdrawal of support while the Prime Minister is on his way to the G-8 meeting. We can as well wait for a few more days," said the Communist Party of India national secretary D. Raja.
UNPA's delaying tactics have confounded the prevailing confusion over the government's survival. It is, however expected that the Samajwadi Party may break away from its allies and come to the rescue of the government with its 39 lawmakers in case their support becomes crucial for survival, since it is opposed to early general elections.
Both Mulayam Singh Yadav and his party general secretary Amar Singh, however, made no bones about their soft corner for the Congress party saying communalism is of greater concern to them than the nuclear deal in the presence of other UNPA constituents.
Asked about their failure to take a stand on the nuclear deal, Amar Singh said that the UNPA was in no hurry considering the federal government and the Left Front were yet to announce their formal divorce.
Number hunt: Congress to push pact
India's ruling Congress party has decided to press ahead with a nuclear energy deal with the United States despite threats by its left-wing allies to bring down the coalition, officials said yesterday.
Faced with losing its majority in parliament because of communist opposition to the pact, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's Congress party has been trying to strike a deal with other parties that would keep it in office.
A senior Congress leader who wished to remain unnamed said his party was "talking to a number of parties including the Samajwadi Party to secure support" and avoid early elections.
"The meeting between SP leaders and the national security advisor yesterday [Wednesday] was part of this. We are going ahead with the [nuclear] deal," he said.
Visiting US Congressman Gary Ackerman made it clear yesterday that India will have to complete all formalities by September if it wanted the Indo-US civilian nuclear energy cooperation agreement to go through and felt that at the moment it was moving slowly.
- Agencies
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