No interference to be allowed in India's strategic programme

New Delhi, Dec 12 (UNI) External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee today informed Parliament that the government had taken note of ''certain extraneous and prescriptive provisions in the (US) legislation'' on the Indo-US nuclear deal and assured the members that India would brook no external scrutiny of its strategic programme.

''We will not allow external scrutiny of or interference with the strategic programme,'' Mr Mukherjee said in a statement that came in the wake of Left parties' call for scrapping the Indo-US nuclear deal in the light of what they said were the unacceptable provisions of the US legislation.

He said the government had always maintained that the conduct of foreign policy determined solely by India's national interests ''is our sovereign right. We have also been clear that our strategic programme remains outside the purview of these discussions aimed at establishing nuclear cooperation.'' Eds: Here pick up suitably from PAR 9 NUCLEAR-PRANAB TWO LS.

UNI SN PK KP1742