Statement by Shri L.K. Advani
Leader of Opposition, Lok SAbha
New Delhi – October 13, 2007

After keeping the nation on tenterhooks for over three months and precipitating the worst ever political crisis for his own government because of his intransigent stand over the Indo-US nuclear deal, Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh has suddenly done a U-turn.

“Even if the nuclear deal does not go through, it will not be the end of life,” the P.M. has said. Smt. Sonia Gandhi has endorsed the P.M’s volte face.

A large majority in Parliament never wanted the flawed deal to go through. The Left Parties are against it just because it is an agreement with the U.S., and they would not like New Delhi to have any truck with Washington.

The BJP’s rejection of the proposed agreement was essentially on the grounds that the government was jeopardizing India’s national security in the name of illusory energy security.

Our view has been that it is a deal between unequals, in which India would have to accept a subservient status vis-à-vis America by surrendering its sovereignty and self-reliance in strategic security matters.

This agreement amounted to a commitment by India that against the wishes of the U.S. Indira Gandhi may have done Pokharan I, and Vajpayee may have gone in for Pokharan II, but hereafter, there would be no Pokharans.

Shockingly, thus, Dr. Manmohan Singh was assisting the United States to bring India into the NPT regime through the backdoor, even though every previous Prime Minister since 1968 (when the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty came into being) had refused to sign it.

Neither rejection of the deal by the NDA and a majority in Parliament, nor widespread criticism from the community of scientists, security experts and foreign policy professionals had made the Prime Minister or the Congress president, who fully backed him, see reason. This is what Dr. Manmohan Singh told the country: “It is not possible to renegotiate the deal. It is an honourable deal, the cabinet has approved it, we cannot go back on it. I told them (the communists) to do whatever they want to do, if they want to withdraw support, so be it...."

And this is what Smt. Sonia Gandhi said at a public rally in Haryana, as recently as on 7th October: “Those who are opposed to the nuclear deal are enemies not only of the Congress but also of the nation’s development. We should all join hands in giving them a strong response.”

Therefore, when I now hear Dr. Manmohan Singh say, “Even if the nuclear deal does not go through, it will not be the end of life,” all I can say is that this is certainly the end of whatever little legitimacy he had in the high office he occupies.

If Dr. Singh and Smt. Sonia Gandhi have suddenly backtracked, they have done it not out of any principles, but purely due to a rude realization that going ahead with the deal would sink the government. Nevertheless, both of them owe an explanation to the nation as to why they caused virtual paralysis of their own government for the past three months.

The extraordinary combination of ineptitude, arrogance, immaturity and lack of conviction that Dr. Manmohan Singh and Smt. Sonia Gandhi have displayed in the past three months shows that the thoroughly opportunist alliance that is the U.P.A., is unfit to govern India. The episode also confirms our party’s evaluation that Dr. Manmohan Singh is the weakest Prime Minister of India has had.

The UPA government is at its weakest point now since its inception in May 2004. From now onwards, its journey can only be downhill.