10-09-2007, 11:03 PM
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Cong blinks under allies' pressure </b>
Pioneer.com
Santanu Banerjee/Nidhi Sharma | New Delhi
NCP, RJD, DMK tell Sonia: We don't share snap poll enthusiasm
UPA allies, barring the Left, like the NCP, RJD and the DMK are not keen on facing a mid-term poll due to which the Congress has come under immense pressure to buy peace with the Left on their stand-off over the India-US civil nuclear deal.Â
With the allies developing cold feet on facing snap poll, the Left leaders claimed after their coordination committee meeting with the UPA on Tuesday that the Government was unlikely to launch formal talks with the IAEA on the nuclear deal for the time being.
The next meeting of the committee has now been fixed for October 22, and the Left leaders claimed that there would not be any forward movement on India's negotiations with the IAEA till then.
Sources said the meeting slated for October 14 has been shelved because both the Prime Minister and Pranab Mukherjee will be out of the country. In a clear indication that the Government would breathe easy till October 22 came from reports that CPI(M) may postpone its politburo meeting slated for October 18.
Asked whether the Government would begin formal talks with the IAEA, CPI(M) politburo member Sitaram Yechury said, "nothing till October 22".
At the same time, the Left has warned they could take a decision to withdraw their support if the Government tried to bypass the understanding arrived at with them.
Sources said during the meeting of the UPA-Left coordination committee on Tuesday, that RJD chief Lalu Prasad and NCP supremo Sharad Pawar told Congress president Sonia Gandhi that they did not share "the Congress euphoria over a mid-term poll." Sources said DMK president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi had communicated a similar message to the Congress leadership before the meeting.
<b>According to Left sources, Lalu Prasad and Sharad Pawar told Congress brass during the meeting that with price rise and growing unemployment issues breathing down the neck of the common people, "Congress euphoria on going to the polls is somewhat misplaced."</b>
Sources claimed that Lalu Prasad had told Pranab Mukherjee to "listen to the Left for the sake of the Government." Later, he held the hands of all political leaders, and said: <b>"Let's not allow the Government to fall."</b>
That the pressure mounted by the allies did work, became apparent when after the meeting, the Left leaders claimed that the Government had agreed not to hold formal negotiations with the IAEA during the visit of its chief Mohamed ElBaradei.
Baradei, who is on a three-day visit to India, is expected to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and top Government officials on Wednesday in Delhi.
Asked to comment on<b> IAEA chief's meeting with the Prime Minister, Yechury quipped 'atithi devo bhava' (a guest is god). "Our agenda is the (India-US) nuclear deal. It is not mid-term elections and not destabilisation. We are saying don't proceed with the deal. Once they take a decision, we will then decide what to do," </b>Yechury said after a two-hour-long meeting of the four Left parties here.
The Left parties met hours after the fourth meeting of the UPA-Left Committee on the nuclear issue, following which CPI general secretary AB Bardhan said, "We don't think any formal negotiations will begin (with IAEA) before this Committee comes out with its findings."
Yechury said the joint committee was set up with a clear understanding that its findings would be considered while operationalising the deal.
"It is there in black and white. We are going by that assurance. Four meetings (of the UPA-Left Committee) have already been held and another will follow on October 22."
<b>"The UPA Government now has options to choose from -- Government with the deal, Government without the deal," </b>a top leader told The Pioneer.
Left insiders point out that even the CPI(M) is facing turmoil in both West Bengal and Kerala on local issues and would not like a mid-term poll at this juncture.
According to Congress sources, the Left did not go into the finer details of the agreement during the meeting, as it had done so far. Instead, they stuck to their basic objection to the nuclear deal per se.
A senior Congress leader said, "The talks were not on smaller issues of Left's objections to Hyde Act provisions. It was back to the basics. They have now said that they are opposed to the 123 Agreement."
Explaining the Left's claim that the Government would not go ahead with formal negotiations with IAEA, a senior Congress leader present at the meeting said, "The Congress has already assured that there would be no formal talks till the time this political mechanism (UPA-Left panel on nuclear deal) is on. But then we would continue with informal talks. We have a deadline of January 2008 to complete all formalities and we are committed to it."
Congress leaders saw the meeting as a step backwards.<b> The Left's note with objections over UPA Government's foreign policy would be discussed in the next meeting, slated for October 22. Earlier, the meeting was to be held on October 14. However, the leaders decided to postpone it in view of Eid.</b>
A senior Congress leader said, "The Left's stance is changing daily. In one of its notes, the Left had said 'Once the 123 Agreement is approved by the US Congress, it would have precedence over the Hyde Act but only to the extent when they conflict each other'. This was followed by their stance that in case of conflict the Hyde Act would be supreme. Now their argument has got very basic that they are against the deal itself."
<b>The Congress is seeing the entire showdown as a 'who blinks first' exercise. </b>Neither side wants to be seen as the one inflicting another general election on the country. The Government would not be able to wait for long to complete the formalities to operationalise the deal. The Left, on its part, would have to take a firm stand sooner or later.
With fresh opposition from its UPA allies on going to the polls, the Congress is publicly insisting that it would succeed in solving the crisis. Congress spokesman Veerappa Moily said: "There is no deadlock. There is a joint mechanism in place. We are talking issue by issue and we hope to address the objections."
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Pioneer.com
Santanu Banerjee/Nidhi Sharma | New Delhi
NCP, RJD, DMK tell Sonia: We don't share snap poll enthusiasm
UPA allies, barring the Left, like the NCP, RJD and the DMK are not keen on facing a mid-term poll due to which the Congress has come under immense pressure to buy peace with the Left on their stand-off over the India-US civil nuclear deal.Â
With the allies developing cold feet on facing snap poll, the Left leaders claimed after their coordination committee meeting with the UPA on Tuesday that the Government was unlikely to launch formal talks with the IAEA on the nuclear deal for the time being.
The next meeting of the committee has now been fixed for October 22, and the Left leaders claimed that there would not be any forward movement on India's negotiations with the IAEA till then.
Sources said the meeting slated for October 14 has been shelved because both the Prime Minister and Pranab Mukherjee will be out of the country. In a clear indication that the Government would breathe easy till October 22 came from reports that CPI(M) may postpone its politburo meeting slated for October 18.
Asked whether the Government would begin formal talks with the IAEA, CPI(M) politburo member Sitaram Yechury said, "nothing till October 22".
At the same time, the Left has warned they could take a decision to withdraw their support if the Government tried to bypass the understanding arrived at with them.
Sources said during the meeting of the UPA-Left coordination committee on Tuesday, that RJD chief Lalu Prasad and NCP supremo Sharad Pawar told Congress president Sonia Gandhi that they did not share "the Congress euphoria over a mid-term poll." Sources said DMK president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi had communicated a similar message to the Congress leadership before the meeting.
<b>According to Left sources, Lalu Prasad and Sharad Pawar told Congress brass during the meeting that with price rise and growing unemployment issues breathing down the neck of the common people, "Congress euphoria on going to the polls is somewhat misplaced."</b>
Sources claimed that Lalu Prasad had told Pranab Mukherjee to "listen to the Left for the sake of the Government." Later, he held the hands of all political leaders, and said: <b>"Let's not allow the Government to fall."</b>
That the pressure mounted by the allies did work, became apparent when after the meeting, the Left leaders claimed that the Government had agreed not to hold formal negotiations with the IAEA during the visit of its chief Mohamed ElBaradei.
Baradei, who is on a three-day visit to India, is expected to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and top Government officials on Wednesday in Delhi.
Asked to comment on<b> IAEA chief's meeting with the Prime Minister, Yechury quipped 'atithi devo bhava' (a guest is god). "Our agenda is the (India-US) nuclear deal. It is not mid-term elections and not destabilisation. We are saying don't proceed with the deal. Once they take a decision, we will then decide what to do," </b>Yechury said after a two-hour-long meeting of the four Left parties here.
The Left parties met hours after the fourth meeting of the UPA-Left Committee on the nuclear issue, following which CPI general secretary AB Bardhan said, "We don't think any formal negotiations will begin (with IAEA) before this Committee comes out with its findings."
Yechury said the joint committee was set up with a clear understanding that its findings would be considered while operationalising the deal.
"It is there in black and white. We are going by that assurance. Four meetings (of the UPA-Left Committee) have already been held and another will follow on October 22."
<b>"The UPA Government now has options to choose from -- Government with the deal, Government without the deal," </b>a top leader told The Pioneer.
Left insiders point out that even the CPI(M) is facing turmoil in both West Bengal and Kerala on local issues and would not like a mid-term poll at this juncture.
According to Congress sources, the Left did not go into the finer details of the agreement during the meeting, as it had done so far. Instead, they stuck to their basic objection to the nuclear deal per se.
A senior Congress leader said, "The talks were not on smaller issues of Left's objections to Hyde Act provisions. It was back to the basics. They have now said that they are opposed to the 123 Agreement."
Explaining the Left's claim that the Government would not go ahead with formal negotiations with IAEA, a senior Congress leader present at the meeting said, "The Congress has already assured that there would be no formal talks till the time this political mechanism (UPA-Left panel on nuclear deal) is on. But then we would continue with informal talks. We have a deadline of January 2008 to complete all formalities and we are committed to it."
Congress leaders saw the meeting as a step backwards.<b> The Left's note with objections over UPA Government's foreign policy would be discussed in the next meeting, slated for October 22. Earlier, the meeting was to be held on October 14. However, the leaders decided to postpone it in view of Eid.</b>
A senior Congress leader said, "The Left's stance is changing daily. In one of its notes, the Left had said 'Once the 123 Agreement is approved by the US Congress, it would have precedence over the Hyde Act but only to the extent when they conflict each other'. This was followed by their stance that in case of conflict the Hyde Act would be supreme. Now their argument has got very basic that they are against the deal itself."
<b>The Congress is seeing the entire showdown as a 'who blinks first' exercise. </b>Neither side wants to be seen as the one inflicting another general election on the country. The Government would not be able to wait for long to complete the formalities to operationalise the deal. The Left, on its part, would have to take a firm stand sooner or later.
With fresh opposition from its UPA allies on going to the polls, the Congress is publicly insisting that it would succeed in solving the crisis. Congress spokesman Veerappa Moily said: "There is no deadlock. There is a joint mechanism in place. We are talking issue by issue and we hope to address the objections."
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