Debate on nuclear deal spills into political mudslinging as parties fight to gain the edge

Pranab makes a spirited defence

Given the rumours that have repeatedly dogged Pranab Mukherjee about his commitment to the deal, or whether he was

Obliquely referring to the India-US civilian nuclear deal, which has put the Manmohan Singh government in peril, Indian ambassador Ronen Sen has defended India's efforts to augment power generation and criticised those who oppose the use of technology.

WITHIN minutes of the luncheon meeting of what looked like a prospective third front, CPM general secretary Prakash Karat warned the Manmohan Singh government against going ahead with the Indo-US nuclear deal if it lost the trust vote on July 22.

Sandeep Dikshit

NEW DELHI: Three of the country's top nuclear scientists have said that once the nuclear deal is in place, India's commercial nuclear interaction with other countries will be "firmly controlled' by Washington through the Hyde Act enforced through the U.S. "stranglehold' on the Nuclear Suppliers Group.

N. Ravi

On balance, it becomes clear that the advantages overwhelmingly outweigh any threat or flaw and the nuclear deal is as good a deal as any government can negotiate.

Vienna, July 18: Lobbying for the Indo-US nuclear deal, India on Friday briefed the IAEA board of governors and some NSG countries on the safeguards agreement amid reports there was no sign of opposition to the accord.

Vienna, July 18: Lobbying for the Indo-US nuclear deal, India on Friday briefed the IAEA Board of Governors and some NSG countries on the safeguards agreement amid reports that there was no sign of opposition to the accord.

After discussing the text of the India-specific safeguards accord with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Mohamed ElBaradei, Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon told representatives of the 54 countries that the text was a good one. Among the 35 members of the IAEA Board of Governors, 26 are also part of Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).

THE US will supplement efforts by India to convince the International Atomic Energy Agency board of governors to give its approval for the India-specific safeguards agreement. Undersecretary of state for political affairs William Burns is traveling to Vienna to help India in its bid to explain the salient points of the safeguards agreement to IAEA board members and a number of Nuclear Suppliers Groups countries, which are not part of the IAEA board.

V. R. Krishna Iyer Sovereign India is justly sceptical about the Manmohan Singh government's specious nuclear strategy. There are shining victories to be won in the cause of peace and social justice. We shall reach the new freedom by not submitting to economic slavery

Draft reflects PM's pledges to Parliament by Arundhati Ghose With the draft safeguards agreement now with the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agnecy (IAEA), freed from the coils of the domestic politicking of poor losers and even more poorly advised opposition parties, there is a need to stand back and examine not just what the draft contains, but also the possible international reactions to the first multilateral exposure of the Indo-US nuclear deal.