The Nuclear "Pause', a victory for democratic polity | Girish Nikam

Published on 15-10-2007 In National

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The Nuclear "Pause', a victory for democratic polity

The two-month old battle of wits between the left parties and the UPA Government, which had almost become a personalized prestige issue between Prime Minister Dr.Manmohan Singh and CPI (M) General Secretary, Prakash Karat, has thankfully ended. If one recalls, the battle began with Karat strongly opposing the 123 agreement in early August, only to find a rather uncharacteristic response from the Prime Minister. His challenge to the left parties to even withdraw support in an extra-ordinary and rare interview set the stage for this ugly confrontation. A day before both Sonia Gandhi and Dr.Singh made all those prophets of doom look very foolish, by unambiguously rejecting any suggestion of a mid-term poll, at the Hindustan Times Summit, any media watcher was convinced that the fall of the Government was inevitable and elections were a certainty.

But now that both of them have put an end to the intense speculations of a mid-term poll, which had gripped the country for the last couple of months, it is inevitable that we will witness media and the opposition trying to find winners and losers in this game.

When it comes to policies, and that too with long-term international and domestic implications---something like a strategic deal with US is the biggest it can get----one has to be more circumspect before indulging in this game.

Now what has happened following the statements of the PM and Sonia? The operationalisation of the Indo-US deal will get delayed. Is it the end of the world for India? Will it mean we go back to those days of nuclear and other technological isolation, which we witnessed through the seventies till the nineties? If one goes by the commentaries and analysis and interpretations in the media already and in the coming days, one is bound to feel that it is a major loss for the country. Naturally because the media is abound with one point of view, which is largely pro-American. But there can't be a better judge of it, than the one who has been passionately advocating it---Dr. Manmohan Singh. His take on a possible delay in the deal getting through was, "it will be certainly disappointing, but it is not the end of life".

Now is it a victory for the left parties, and a defeat for Dr.Singh? Many would try to perceive it as that. But one has to understand that if Sonia and Manmohan have finally agreed to "pause", it is only because there was another point of view, which was openly and strongly advocated by the left parties. But that was not all. There was also a silent but significant number of people, in Congress as well as other UPA parties' including MPs as well as experts, who had felt as strongly, if not more, than the left parties about the impact the deal would have on long term foreign and strategic policies of India.

If Manmohan and Sonia have bowed to these pressures, it is not their defeat, but a victory for democratic polity in this country.

So is this a "pause" or as many are already saying the "death" of the deal? Well, on the face of it, and going by the comments and statements being made all around by those involved in it and otherwise, it is an end. But Dr.Singh does not seem to have given up hope. As he hopes, "common sense and reason" would prevail.

Now the common hype created was that unless we go to the IAEA before the end of this month, it would be difficult to catch the US Congress, before George Bush becomes a lame duck President. Well, the present "pause" is a clear indication that we cannot go by the deadlines set by the Americans. If that means the end of the deal, so be it. A new President in America, depending on who it is, will always try it again. After all India has endured over 30 years of isolation, and it certainly can wait for one more year.

Meanwhile, there is already thinking among the left parties as well as in the Government, whether India can approach for a safeguard agreement with the IAEA, by keeping the Indo-US 123 agreement on the sidelines. It certainly is a thought, which needs working. And if it succeeds, it would mean we could do nuclear commerce, with other countries. Be it buying uranium or nuclear technology or selling our own nuclear technology, like the fast breeder reactors, in which we are the world leaders. It is not going to be easy, considering the hold US has on the present uni-polar world. But if we do succeed, it may even mean, heralding a multi-polar world.

Meanwhile, why was there so much hype about a mid-term poll? So much so that many political parties, including some Congressmen in States, not to mention, BJP and even Janata Dal(S) Chief H.D.Deve Gowda, had started preparing for it. The problem lies in our media. After having been justifiably excited over the remarks made by the Prime Minister in early August daring the left to withdraw support, if it did not like the 123 agreement, the media went ballistic later. The majority of the media, once it finalised its agenda that there is going to be a mid-term poll, refused to look at other possibilities. Every statement or even a whisper by the hardline, UPA and left leaders was interpreted to suit its pre-conceived notion.

The media made a self-fulfilling prophecy, and went about trying to make it a reality, or atleast that is what it seemed like. So much so, the statement of Pranab Mukherjee in New York, a couple of weeks ago, that even if the nuclear deal with US does not come through, it would not harm the Indo-US relations was underplayed. Even Sonia's remarks in New York that left parties were only expressing their views and that it was a perfectly acceptable democratic exercise was also given the short shrift.

This game of self-fulfilling prophecy reached its climax, when Sonia Gandhi last week addressed a meeting in Haryana's Jhajjar town. Though one has to admit that her speech was a badly written one, and therefore could be interpreted in the way it was, the media however blew it up beyond all proportions. "Sonia attacks left, calls them enemies of development", the headlines screamed, and therefore, the interpretations were, she was planning to go for elections. All except for a couple of newspapers ignored even the quick clarification by the Congress that it was not what she meant.

But the bubble was to burst soon, and it did at the Hindustan Times Summit. And its time for the media to reflect again why it went wrong and the UPA-left to ponder whether they can work together without indulging in such ugly, public confrontations.

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