PM make public clarification over nuclear deal, demands SP

New Delhi, Jul 2 (UNI) A day ahead of the UNPA meeting where it was to formally state its final stand on the controversial Indo-US nuclear deal, the Samajwadi Party (SP) today demanded that Prime Minister publicly clarify all doubts about the nuclear civil energy pact.

The demand of the SP, whose support to the UPA Government would be crucial in the event of the Left parting ways with the Congress-led ruling Alliace, has come amid frequent and strong indications over the past few days that it was inclined to back the Congress over the deal provided its doubts were removed.

''We want to know clearly whether the deal will compromise the political, economic and nuclear sovereignty of the country,'' Mr Amar Singh told mediapersons after an hour-long meeting with National Security Advisor M K Narayanan in which party general secretray Ramgopal Yadav was also present.

Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav, though in the capital, did not take part in the discussions.

The meeting was arranged to clarify the doubts of the SP over the deal after the hardening of the Left's stand over the issue.

However, Mr Singh remained evasive whether his party SP had decided to extend support to the Manmohan Singh government on the deal.

He said even if the SP was a bigger partner of the UNPA, it would not decide the issue on its own without taking them in confidence.

The Samajwadi Party, which had initially opposed the deal, had of late been maintaining that it was ready to change its stand if some new facts were brought up to assure it that the deal would not harm national interest.

''We have raised the points on which the Left Parties have reservations in regard to the deal. We have conveyed that it is not an issue which needs to be explained only by the National Security Advisor. All clarifications in regard to the deal should be made by the Prime Minister himself,'' he said.

He refused to disclose whether he was satisfied with Mr Narayanan's explaination and whether he had modified his stand after it, though he said Mr Narayanan tried to remove all their doubts over the deal.

''We will first share this infomation with our UNPA allies tomorrow before disclosing it to the media,'' he said.

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