Govt should take Parliament's consent on nuclear deal: VP

New Delhi, July 12 (UNI) Former Prime Minister V P Singh today demanded that the UPA government should get Parliament's approval on the Indo-US civil nuclear energy deal before it ratified the agreement with the United States.

Sovereign powers lay with the Parliament and not the government, he said seeking an amendment to the Constitution making it mandatory for the government to get Parliament's approval before it ratified any international agreement.

''It should be remembered that a treaty binds generations to come.'' Mr Singh said he was all for good relations with the US, after all trade relations had been growing all along but 'master-servant' was not acceptable.

He alleged that the treaty in its present form would not allow India to conduct any further nuclear testing.

''This is unacceptable especially when Pakistan was free to conduct further tests.'' The treaty would also forbid India from re-processing nuclear fuel, he said.

''This will ensure the country had no reserve and hence be totally depended on uranium imports... Besides, uranium would also cause environmental problems and security issues.'' The former prime minister was of the opinion that India should focus on setting up nuclear plants that used thorium, which was readily available in the country.

The government needs to clear up these issues in Parliament before a final decision was taken on the treaty. The opinion of scientists should also be taken in a transparent manner, he added.

Talking about the Dadri SEZ issue, Mr Singh said the UP government's decision not to acquire land for the industrial house was a victory for the cause he and his party were fighting.

He announced that Jan Morcha would also protest against acquisition of farmers' land for setting up Special Economic Zone in Gurgaon, Haryana.

UNI