‘BJP not against nuclear deal’

Senior BJP leader and the former Deputy Prime Minister, L. K. Advani, on Tuesday reiterated that his party was not “basically” opposed to a nuclear agreement with the U.S. but sought redrafting of the present deal to ensure that there was no restriction on India carrying out atomic tests in the future.

Addressing industrialists at the Assocham annual general body meeting here, Mr. Advani said: “We do not basically oppose the nuclear agreement.” He wanted the 123 Agreement to be redrafted “to insulate India from the Hyde Act…Our reservation is only on the written word that there should not be any further nuclear tests.”

Mr. Advani charged that even Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had not adhered to the “promises” made in Parliament regarding the deal. “We had demanded a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the deal.

Instead, the government decided to form a Coordination Committee only with the Left parties,” he said.

Pitching for inclusive and accelerated growth, Mr. Advani favoured India evolving its own development model.

He asserted that the BJP would work for it as the development model should be in alignment with the country’s needs.

His party was neither for the erstwhile Soviet model of controlled industrialisation nor the Western model.

“Why can’t India have an independent model like the East Asian countries,” he asked.

“Haven’t many countries around the world been trying to evolve their own model of development, based on their specific conditions, constraints, resources and cultures? I can cite the example of China, Singapore, Malaysia, Turkey, Russia and several others,” he said.

Economic disparities

Pointing to the economic disparities in India, Mr. Advani said: “As the country progresses, we will have to do away with the wide gaps between the rich and the poor and ensure inclusive growth for all…For growth to be meaningful, it must change the lives of the vast majority of our ordinary people, both in rural and urban areas.”

Turning to the SEZ policy, Mr. Advani said his party supported them as long as they were promoting exports. Comparing the Karnataka Assembly elections results to the just-concluded Indian Premier League T20 cricket which promoted young talent from across the country, he said the BJP allowed the JD(S) to bat first, but they refused to hand over the bat once their 20 overs (nee months) were up.

Taking a dig at the Congress — without naming it — for not declaring a Chief ministerial candidate, he said “a third party refused to name their captain.”

He targeted the Congress on governance saying, “My party has always believed that a strong Centre can co-exist with strong States. Similarly, we believe that a strong Prime Minister and strong Chief Ministers can both add strength to the nation…Ironically, the present ruling establishment believes that not only the Chief Ministers but also the Prime Minister should be weak and subservient to the dynasty.”

-The Hindu