New Delhi, August 23
The CPM, after the meeting of the 85-member Central Committee, today stuck to its stand on the nuclear deal, but toned down its threat to the Manmohan Singh government.

“The Central Committee does not want the current crisis to affect the government,” CPM general secretary Prakash Karat said after the conclusion of the two-day meet of the party’s highest decision-making body here.

However, he added the rider that “this is contingent upon the government not proceeding further with the agreement”.

All eyes are now on the nuclear debate in Parliament next week, where the government is likely to indicate its intentions on whether it will go ahead with the operationalisation of the deal or not and if negotiations for the India specific agreement will begin with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in the third week of next month.

Indicating that there won’t be another brainstorming session of the party to decide on the future course of action on the issue, he said the committee had authorised the Politburo to “take whatever necessary measures to see that the agreement is not operationalised”.

Asked what step the party is going to take if the deal is implemented, Karat cryptically said: “If the government operationalises the nuclear agreement, its future lies with the government.”

When asked about the options before his party, he said: “We will discuss that when they operationalise the agreement”. “If we do not support, how will this government go on,” he asked.

On the withdrawal of support, Karat said: “The party did not use the words that it would withdraw support. We have not used the words ‘withdraw support’ in any of our statements. You won’t see a single leader of the CPM either in Delhi or in Kolkata or in Hyderabad having said that. Our politburo has not made such a statement.”

When asked to elaborate on their threat of “serious consequences”, Karat said: “We will decide when the operationalisation of the agreement takes place. Then we will decide.”

On his reaction to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s comments “if winter is there, can spring be far behind”, Karat said: “I hope there will be no nuclear fission and there is a long nuclear winter.”

The committee noted the various objections and apprehensions voiced by scientists, public figures and intelligentsia on the nuclear deal. Above all, it is a fact that the majority of members of Parliament are opposed to the agreement, the resolution said.

This alone should make the government pause and not proceed further with the next steps to be taken to operationalise the deal.

It is incumbent on the government, which commands a majority in Parliament only with the support of Left parties, to heed the voices of opposition. It should examine the objections and clear the implications of the Hyde Act, it said.

On the setting up of some mechanism to study the implication of the Hyde Act, he said: “We are prepared for any.... We have already said three days ago that we are prepared to consider any mechanism or committee to examine the problems connected with this agreement, provided they don’t proceed with the next step.”

To a question about the government talking to members of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), he said: “We are aware of that and since the Japanese Prime Minister is here, I am sure the Prime Minister will have talked about that. We don’t expect him not to do that.”

On the IAEA meeting in September, he averred: “We know that we are members of the IAEA board. Our representatives will attend the international annual conference. All these are normal things. We are not going into all these. We are not flustered by such things. It is expected. We expect them to be there. We have to have Indian representatives there.”