Referring to the PM’s October 12 remark that the nuclear deal was not the end of life, Moily said that the deal had been “struck” and only the operationalisation was “pending”. “Countries like China took 13 years to operationalise. In that context, the PM said that it was not the end of life. It cannot be taken in isolation.”

“It is not just the Congress, it is the credibility of the country. That is why the PM becomes emotional. The deal has to be viewed in the nationalist perspective. The PM has to think of the country, which is behind the deal. It is not political expediency, it is the nation as a whole,” he said.

Indirectly referring to the Left using the marriage analogy to describe ties with the UPA, Moily said “a marriage is a bundle of compromises.”