Ruling out scope of any meeting ground with the UPA on the Indo-US nuclear deal, the BJP on Wednesday reiterated their demand for renegotiation of the controversial deal and made it clear that the opposition should not be hustled through on the matter.
The BJP?s refusal to set aside political differences and come to the rescue of the UPA, in the face of the standoff with the Left on the nuclear issue, came after a meeting of the party?s core group on Wednesday.
In a joint statement after the meeting, senior BJP leader LK Advani, party chief Rajnath Singh and leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Jaswant Singh said the deal is not acceptable to them in the present form as it ??compromises long-term strategic programmes of India, vital for the country?s security??. It would also not help meet the country?s energy needs of future, said the statement.
The government had indirectly been making moves to win over the opposition after attempts to get the Left to support the deal proved unsuccessful. Over the last two days, national security advisor MK Narayanan and the AEC chief Anil Kakodkar had called on BJP leaders and held discussions pertaining to the deal. The US too had initiated moves to coax the BJP to endorse the deal with players like Henry Kissinger and US ambassador David Mulford holding meetings with the BJP top brass.
A reference to these meetings in its statement implied that the BJP saw them as as a lobbying exercise to secure their support to the deal. The BJP support could have proved to be a critical factor for the UPA in the forthcoming winter session of parliament, as it would negate the Left charge that the government was increasingly getting isolated on the deal.
Emphasising that the deal could not be the sole benchmark of Indo-US relations, party spokesman Ravi Shankar Prasad said the BJP was firm that the country?s minimum deterrence could not be sacrificed for ??illusory nuclear energy needs??. The national strategic interests are of primary importance and energy needs are secondary, he said outlining the party’s view, which appeared to contradict that of former national security adviser Brajesh Mishra, who said, this was ?best possible deal? and he could have ?allowed? it if he was given guarantees about protection of the country?s strategic interests.
