New Delhi, Sep 30 (IANS) The Left parties will observe a ‘black day’ on Oct 4, the day US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrives here to sign the Indo-US civil nuclear deal, to protest the “surrender to US imperialism”.
“The day will be observed by hoisting of black flags, demonstrations with black flags and wearing of black badges,” the four Left parties – CPI-M, Communist Party of India, Revolutionary Socialist Party and Forward Bloc – said in a joint statement.
The Left has also asked other democratic parties and organisations to join in the united protest against the Manmohan Singh government’s “betrayal of India’s sovereign interests”.
“The US Congress is adopting a legislation approving the Indo-US nuclear cooperation agreement and the act to be adopted by the Senate includes all the retrograde provisions of the Hyde Act and also puts further constraints on full civilian nuclear cooperation in India,” the statement said.
The Left parties said the Indo-US nuclear agreement provided for no assurance of uninterrupted fuel supply to India, no provision for strategic fuel reserves and no transfer of nuclear technology. It also included steps to be taken against Iran.
“Any self-respecting government would have refused to sign the deal and operationalise it after this,” the statement said.
Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) general secretary Prakash Karat said in Chhattisargh’s Raipur Sunday that the Left parties would observe a “black day” when the India-US civil nuclear deal is signed.