Govt ready to hold nuke debate in RS: Dasmunsi

New Delhi, Sep 5: The Government today again ruled out constituting a Joint Parliamentary Committee on the Indo-US nuclear deal but said it was prepared to hold a debate on the 123 agreement tomorrow in the Rajya Sabha and if the opposition wanted it could discuss the issue with them also ''in camera''.

Criticising the opposition for creating a ruckus and disrupting the proceedings of both Houses of Parliament on the nuclear deal issue today, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi told reporters here that External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee met Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha L K Advani and Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Jaswant Singh and offered that if they had any specific concern which they wanted the government to discuss it was ready to hold talks with them also in camera.

Both the leaders told Mr Mukherjee that they would discuss the matter with the NDA and inform the government tomorrow, he informed.

Though staunchly refusing the Opposition demand for a JPC, Mr Dasmunsi said the government was ready to bring forward the debate on the nuclear deal from September 11 to tomorrow in the Rajya Sabha to clear its(Opposition) apprehensions. However, in the Lok Sabha since a debate on price rise moved by Left Parties was pending and there was a debate scheduled on the Sachar Committee recommendation so the matter could not be taken up there now, he said.

Defending the constitution of the 15-member UPA-Left panel on the nuclear deal, Mr Dasmunsi said it was neither a government committee to be reported in the gazette nor a Parliamentary panel but a political committee constituted by the ruling UPA and its allies, the Left Parties. ''It is a matter between the UPA and the Left.'' He said never had any agreement been placed before a Parliamentary Panel as there was no constitutional provision for it.

Moreover, he reminded the August 17 ruling of Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee that the demand for renegotiating the deal was not within the ''competence of the House''. If it was beyond the competence of the House then how could the JPC be constituted on the issue, he wondered.

Reminding the NDA of how during its regime it had taken support of the Congress on the WTO issue, Mr Dasmunsi said the BJP disrupted the proceedings in the Lok Sabha today under a strategy to avoid a discussion on the Sachar Committee report. He also hit out at the Janata Dal (United) and Telugu Desam for disrupting the proceedings and not discussing the Sachar committee report though they claimed to be in favour of minorities.

He said by frequent disruptions, creating a ruckus and ugly scenes the Opposition had brought disrepute to Parliament and even Prime Minister Manmohan Singh could not read his statement.

The Opposition was trying to run a vicious and false campaign to counter which they had no medicine, he alleged.

However, the government was ready to face the House and explain its position on the nuclear deal tomorrow itself. The government was ready to clear any anxiety on the nuclear issue of the opposition, tomorrow itself. But the formal outcome of the move would be known only tomorrow whether the opposition allowed the debate to take place or not in view of the fact that it had not allowed a debate on crucial issue like the Sachar committee report to take place, he said.

Regarding the unconfirmed reports that Parliament could be adjourned sine die before schedule in view of the disruptions, Mr Dasmunsi denied any such move. However, he refused to say that the session would continue till its scheduled date, that is September 14.

About the UPA-Left panel's discussion on operationalisation of the 123 Agreement, he said since the Committee had just been formed it would take some time before a final decision could be arrived at on the issue. Moreover, IAEA had not any set timeframe, he added.

Earlier, CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury met Mr Mukherjee to discuss the issue and how to ensure smooth functioning of Parliament.

UNI