Pranab revives hopes on n-deal, says Govt hasn’t given up

External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee also discounted the possibility of mid-term polls to the Lok Sabha in the wake of differences with the supporting Left parties on the deal. During an interaction with PTI editors here, Mukherjee, the key Government negotiator with the Left on the deal, agreed that “time is running out” for completing the processes in executing it. “But one cannot help it,” he said.

“No, I have not given up. We are working on how we can proceed,” he said, replying to a question on whether the Government had not given up on the deal because of the stiff opposition from the Left parties.

He dismissed suggestions that the deal would now be on the back-burner as the Left may step up pressure in the wake of Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh poll outcome, saying “their position is not linked with electoral successes and reverses”.

Mukherjee sidestepped repeated queries on a specific timeframe for operationalising the deal, but hoped that negotiations with the IAEA on a safeguards treaty should be completed by this month-end.

Agreeing that time was running out for concluding the deal, the senior Congress leader said if the Government lost majority the international community would not come forward to have an agreement with a minority Government.

“Of course time is running out. But one cannot help it. Either you lose majority and if a Government loses majority nobody is going to have an arrangement with a minority Government,” he said.

On the other hand if similar agreements were to be entered into with other countries like France and Russia, the same process of agreements with IAEA and the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group was needed. The minister said the Left leaders had no objection to the IAEA as they appreciated and knew it well that India was one of the founder members of the global nuclear watchdog and had been a member of its board for several times.