By IANS,
New Delhi : The Communist Party of India (Marxist) Tuesday charged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with disregarding parliament by saying he will seek its approval after the IAEA approves India-specific safeguards to operationalise the India-US civilian nuclear deal.
“The prime minister shows a disregard for parliament. It reveals nothing but an obsession to fulfil the commitment made to (US) President (George) Bush in July 2005 in which the people of this country and parliament had no say,” the CPI-M said in a statement.
Manmohan Singh Monday said that he will get a “sense of parliament” before signing the nuclear deal with the US.
The Left parties have said they will end their legislative support to the UPA government once it approached the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for its approval of the India-specific safeguards.
In its statement Tuesday, the CPI-M said: “As per the prime ministser’s proposal, the government should be allowed to take the next step of getting the NSG waiver.
“After both the steps taken for operationalisation of the deal, the prime minister promises to take the sense of parliament. This would mean a fait accompli, as the only step left would be a vote in the US congress.”
The party pointed out that the government had not shown the text of the nuclear safeguards agreement to the United Progressive Alliance (UPA)-Left nuclear committee. And it had not been made public.
“The government now insists on going ahead for getting the board’s (IAEA) approval without anyone seeing the text or the UPA-Left committee giving its concurrence.”
The CPI-M also pointed out that both houses of parliament had already discussed comprehensively the nuclear deal in December.
“It is on record that except for the UPA parties, all other parties which constitute the majority expressed reservations about the 123 Agreement and urged the government not to proceed further.”