Hyde Act: Onus on UPA govt, says Jyoti Basu

Kolkata, Aug 24: Ruling out any possibility of the Left backing out on its stand over Indo-US nuclear deal, CPI(M) patriarch Jyoti Basu today said the ball was now in the Congress court and the onus was on the UPA Government to clarify the implications of the Hyde Act.

''There is no question of backing out on the issue,'' he told reporters after attending the party's state Secretariat meeting.

''Now the ball is in the court of the Congress. Let us see what it does. We are awaiting a reply to our letter sent to the Government after the last Central Committee meeting that made clear our stand on the issue,'' he said.

Mr.Basu said the Government must make known what the Hyde Act was and what impact it would have on the country once the agreement was implemented.

His comments came a day after CPI(M) General Secretary Prakash Karat told the Congress-led Government not to operationalise the controversial pact or be prepared to face the consequences.

While stating that the CPI(M) did not want the current crisis to continue, Mr.Karat warned that it was contingent upon the Government not to go ahead with the deal.

He said the Central Committee had authorised the party's Polit Bureau to take necessary steps with regard to blocking the deal.

UNI