Concern of scientists over civil nuclear deal must be allayed: BJP

Bhopal, Dec 17 (UNI) Demanding allaying of fears of nuclear scientists over the Indo-US civil nuclear deal, the BJP today said the deal would be cancelled if the NDA came to power.

Senior BJP leader and former Union Minister Murli Manohar Joshi told reporters here that Indian nuclear scientists had expressed serious concerns over the deal and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh must allay these concerns.

Pointing out that India could not cancel the deal as per the terms of the agreement, he said the NDA would look into certain options to get the deal cancelled once it comes to power. However, he refused to divulge about these options at present.

Regretting that Indian scientists were not being involved in the concerned dialogue, Mr Joshi said bureaucrats could not understand the serious issue without technical assistance. Hence, scientific advice was necessary to understand the nitty-gritty of the deal.

Claiming that the deal completely safeguarded the US interests, he said the deal would adversely affect India's independent nuclear policy and the country would become heavily dependent on the US for its energy requirements.

The BJP leader said the deal provided the US right to inspect nuclear reactors in detail. The intervention could affect the nuclear research programme in the country.

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