The Telugu Desam Party said on Tuesday it would oppose the Civil Nuclear Liability Bill unless the government reconsidered relevant amendments that were included in the legislation.
Party chief N. Chandrababu Naidu said the TDP was with the Left parties on the issue and it would “fight it out” if the government did not consider making the changes as demanded by the Left.
“From the beginning, we are very clear. We were opposed to the nuclear bill. Now, the government has ignored the Standing Committee's recommendations. It should make the relevant changes, otherwise we will continue to oppose the bill,” he told journalists here.
Mr. Naidu said the party, like others, had objections to the word ‘intent,' which would protect foreign suppliers of nuclear material.
He said the party would make its stand clear on Wednesday when the bill was expected to be tabled in Parliament.
Mr. Naidu alleged that electronic voting machines could be tampered with and doubts about their functioning had “reduced people's faith in the system.” He demanded that the Election Commission convene an all-party meeting to discuss steps required to reform the voting system.
Mr. Naidu, who is in the forefront of the anti-EVM campaign, said his party would raise the issue in both Houses of Parliament on Wednesday.
“The EC [Election Commission] should convene an all-party meeting as soon as possible and engage experts to clear doubts and deliberate ways to conduct elections in a fool-proof manner… Many experts have proved that these machines can be tampered with. So, the EC should not be reluctant to clear the doubts,” he said.
