08-21-2007, 05:54 AM
<b>National consensus imperative on N-deal</b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->More heat. Less light. More confusion. Less clarity. Only those endowed with clairvoyant insight or intuitive understanding can make sense out of the cacophonous chorus inside and outside Parliament. Not one in a hundred grasps the complexity, intricacy and scientific jargon of the nuclear deal and 123 Agreement. Varying degrees of ignorance are on rampant display.
So, how does one find oneâs way out of this nuclear deal maze? The adamantine and worrying fact is that the nuclear deal has now become a political issue. Parliament is divided, the country is also witnessing a breakdown of the 60-year-old consensus on foreign policy. It is for the government to repair this grave damage. I, for one, get the distinct impression that members of the Congress are groping in the dark. The media is having a ball. Yesterday, an editorial in the Hindustan Times was not so gently critical of Dr Manmohan Singh. The Hindu had a blistering editorial yesterday. It was unsparing in its disapproval of the Prime Ministerâs handling of this matter. Mr Prakash Karatâs article was even more strident.
The debate on the nuclear deal in Parliament should cause a break in the nuclear clouds hovering over Sansad Bhavan and beyond.
<b>The UPA allies have not gone public but are obviously uncomfortable. They do not relish the idea of a mid-term election. Not many parties do. Those who think or wish that the UPA government will fall or that Dr Manmohan Singh will resign are mixing hope with facts. The UPA government may be wounded but not mortally. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is unlikely to resign. Nor is he going to be dumped. I say this with utmost respect, but I was surprised by his remarks to a Kolkata daily and a well known weekly magazine. He is a man who uses words with care and precision. Then why in his 76th year did he decide to embrace indiscretion? Why did the mild mannered Prime Minister go ballistic â "take it or leave it," "so be it"? Totally out of character. The interview to the weekly magazine was both baffling and bizarre. "Havans," "higher power," "destiny." The television is a cruel mechanism. It is merciless in focusing on "body language." The Prime Minister seems to have lost the well known spring in his walk.</b>
The opposition in Parliament to the nuclear deal is not likely to disappear. The Left parties have taken a principled stand. So have the BJP and the UNPA. They do not support the deal. They go much further. They are opposed to growing American influence which is doing injury to Indiaâs foreign policy. They ask: Why has government not made any statement on the continuing horror and tragedy in Iraq? Why is the sinister Hyde Act not being openly talked about? The other parties too have similar concerns. These must be addressed.
I do not, for a moment, agree with those who say that India is being sold. We are a great nation, a great people and a great civilisation. No one can browbeat us or even push us around. The proud people of India will never, repeat, never, tolerate a subservient foreign policy. Unfortunately, the impression has been created that the Prime Minister is bending backwards to accommodate President Bush. This impression is widespread. A corrective is needed.
The spokesmen of the government maintain that the deal cannot be re-negotiated. Why in the name of heaven not? Read history â US President Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924) signed the Treaty of Versailles in 1919. The US Senate shot it down. Mr Wilson did not resign. More recently, Bill Clinton was hellbent to sell the CTBT to the world. When he took it to Senate it too shot it down. Mr Clinton did not quit. The European Union had a referendum on the Maastricht Treaty. France and Denmark voted against the draft. The whole thing was re-negotiated and an amicable solution was found. Treaties, agreements, deals etc., can always be re-negotiated, re-worked.
Will this adversely affect our international image? Not if we go about it the right way.
<b>In the final analysis, the Prime MInister of India is answerable to the people and Parliament of India. Not to any superpower. Indian national interest is paramount.</b>
<b>The nuclear deal, dovetailed with the Hyde Act, has one very vital domestic dimension. The 150 million Muslims of India are totally opposed to the nuclear deal in its present form. The Left parties, the BJP, the emerging Third Front cannot but be mindful of this factor. This, I presume, is also the position of the vast majority of members of the UPA.</b>
What is the way out? Take all political parties into confidence. Tell President Bush that we have to carry Parliament and the people with us. We are a democracy. We cannot railroad. For great countries the "loss of face" syndrome does not apply. Statesmen should not despair. They should not only contemplate problems, but find answers for them. The UPA government is not short of talent, or diplomatic experience. As I have often said, crisis management is our forté. Here is a momentous challenge for our diplomacy and foreign policy. Let us face it and overcome it as a united people and a united Parliament.
The Prime Minister must work to achieve national consensus on nuclear deal
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
So, how does one find oneâs way out of this nuclear deal maze? The adamantine and worrying fact is that the nuclear deal has now become a political issue. Parliament is divided, the country is also witnessing a breakdown of the 60-year-old consensus on foreign policy. It is for the government to repair this grave damage. I, for one, get the distinct impression that members of the Congress are groping in the dark. The media is having a ball. Yesterday, an editorial in the Hindustan Times was not so gently critical of Dr Manmohan Singh. The Hindu had a blistering editorial yesterday. It was unsparing in its disapproval of the Prime Ministerâs handling of this matter. Mr Prakash Karatâs article was even more strident.
The debate on the nuclear deal in Parliament should cause a break in the nuclear clouds hovering over Sansad Bhavan and beyond.
<b>The UPA allies have not gone public but are obviously uncomfortable. They do not relish the idea of a mid-term election. Not many parties do. Those who think or wish that the UPA government will fall or that Dr Manmohan Singh will resign are mixing hope with facts. The UPA government may be wounded but not mortally. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is unlikely to resign. Nor is he going to be dumped. I say this with utmost respect, but I was surprised by his remarks to a Kolkata daily and a well known weekly magazine. He is a man who uses words with care and precision. Then why in his 76th year did he decide to embrace indiscretion? Why did the mild mannered Prime Minister go ballistic â "take it or leave it," "so be it"? Totally out of character. The interview to the weekly magazine was both baffling and bizarre. "Havans," "higher power," "destiny." The television is a cruel mechanism. It is merciless in focusing on "body language." The Prime Minister seems to have lost the well known spring in his walk.</b>
The opposition in Parliament to the nuclear deal is not likely to disappear. The Left parties have taken a principled stand. So have the BJP and the UNPA. They do not support the deal. They go much further. They are opposed to growing American influence which is doing injury to Indiaâs foreign policy. They ask: Why has government not made any statement on the continuing horror and tragedy in Iraq? Why is the sinister Hyde Act not being openly talked about? The other parties too have similar concerns. These must be addressed.
I do not, for a moment, agree with those who say that India is being sold. We are a great nation, a great people and a great civilisation. No one can browbeat us or even push us around. The proud people of India will never, repeat, never, tolerate a subservient foreign policy. Unfortunately, the impression has been created that the Prime Minister is bending backwards to accommodate President Bush. This impression is widespread. A corrective is needed.
The spokesmen of the government maintain that the deal cannot be re-negotiated. Why in the name of heaven not? Read history â US President Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924) signed the Treaty of Versailles in 1919. The US Senate shot it down. Mr Wilson did not resign. More recently, Bill Clinton was hellbent to sell the CTBT to the world. When he took it to Senate it too shot it down. Mr Clinton did not quit. The European Union had a referendum on the Maastricht Treaty. France and Denmark voted against the draft. The whole thing was re-negotiated and an amicable solution was found. Treaties, agreements, deals etc., can always be re-negotiated, re-worked.
Will this adversely affect our international image? Not if we go about it the right way.
<b>In the final analysis, the Prime MInister of India is answerable to the people and Parliament of India. Not to any superpower. Indian national interest is paramount.</b>
<b>The nuclear deal, dovetailed with the Hyde Act, has one very vital domestic dimension. The 150 million Muslims of India are totally opposed to the nuclear deal in its present form. The Left parties, the BJP, the emerging Third Front cannot but be mindful of this factor. This, I presume, is also the position of the vast majority of members of the UPA.</b>
What is the way out? Take all political parties into confidence. Tell President Bush that we have to carry Parliament and the people with us. We are a democracy. We cannot railroad. For great countries the "loss of face" syndrome does not apply. Statesmen should not despair. They should not only contemplate problems, but find answers for them. The UPA government is not short of talent, or diplomatic experience. As I have often said, crisis management is our forté. Here is a momentous challenge for our diplomacy and foreign policy. Let us face it and overcome it as a united people and a united Parliament.
The Prime Minister must work to achieve national consensus on nuclear deal
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->