The Hindu : National : No threat to Centre: Lalu

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Sunday, Aug 26, 2007
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No threat to Centre: Lalu

Varanasi: Railway Minister Lalu Prasad on Saturday ruled out any threat to the UPA government in the wake of the stand-off with the Left parties over the India-U.S. nuclear deal.

“No party, Left or right, wants mid-term elections as it would not be beneficial for the electorate and the political parties...it would arrest the pace of the ongoing economic development in the country,” he told reporters here.

However, when asked about the possibility of the fall of the government due to the crisis, he said: “If it happens, what can be done?”

Efforts were being made at various levels to allay the Left parties’ concern over the sensitive issue, Mr. Prasad pointed out.

“In fact, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has repeatedly addressed the Left parties’ concerns on the nuclear issue and reiterated that the proposed deal did neither compromised our sovereignty nor our rights to conduct a nuclear test in the future,” he told reporters here.

On the next month’s meeting between the IAEA and the Indian representatives on the deal, Mr. Prasad said the government should go ahead with negotiations as it was a continuous process.

Taking a contrary view to the Left parties, he said the proposed agreement would enable the country to build infrastructural like power for the ongoing development projects.

Mr. Prasad, whose RJD is a key ally of the UPA government, also disagreed with the Left parties that the deal was strategic in nature and would bind India from conducting nuclear tests in the future. — PTI

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