By IANS,
New Delhi : The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was not against nuclear energy nor was it opposed to a “strategic relationship” with the US, Leader of Oppostion L.K. Advani declared Monday during his speech on the trust vote in the Lok Sabha.
“We are not against nuclear energy. We are not against a very close relationship with the US. I may differ with the Communists on this view,” Advani said, adding that they had no objections to a strategic relationship with the US, Japan or Russia.
“We are not at all opposed with having a relationship with America. (But) Irrespective of how powerful the country, we would not like India to be a party to an agreement which is unequal,” the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate said.
He stated that the India-US nuclear deal makes India a “subservient partner”.
Advani said his party would “renegotiate the nuclear deal”. “We will make it a deal between equal partners so that strategic interests are not compromised.”
Quoting “authoritative sources” who told newspapers that the deal was on auto-pilot, Advani asked whether the government had rendered parliament irrelevant.
“My feeling is that it is not true,” he said.
According to Advani, there should be a constitutional amendment. All issues relating to security and “integrity of the country” should be decided by parliament, he suggested.