Left-UPA panel meeting inconclusive

After discussing the nuclear deal for two hours today, neither the UPA nor the Left budged an inch from their earlier position on the contentious Hyde Act. The government repeated that once the 123 Agreement had been ratified in the US Congress, national laws including the Hyde Act would become "irrelevant". The Left, led by CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat, rejected this argument and reiterated that the Hyde Act would supersede the 123 Agreement.

If anything, the committee stood poised to stretch out its deliberations because Karat refused to share with the government, the Left parties' reservations on other aspects of the Indo-US relations until discussions on the Hyde Act and the 123 Agreement had first been concluded.

After the meeting, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee told the media: "Discussions were constructive and will continue." The government also tried to convince the Left with the argument that the Indo-US nuclear agreement was better than the US agreements with China and Japan. This had little effect as Karat said bluntly at the meeting that comparisons were meaningless.

On the government's contention that it would get a year's time before terminating the deal, Karat told UPA leaders: "It will be US which will scrap the deal. We will not do such a thing as we are the recipients."

Sparks flew in the meeting, testifying to the tension lurking below the surface. Mukherjee indirectly charged the Left with mounting a false campaign and said: "An impression is being created that it is the government which avoided a discussion on the nuclear issue in Parliament. This is untrue." Karat retorted: "We never said the Congress avoided discussion. But we want a full-fledged discussion." Mukherjee emphasised that the government was ready for a detailed discussion at "any given time".