Indo-US nuclear deal established ex-PM Manmohan Singh knew how to do politics: Montek Ahluwalia

New Delhi, Nov 13 (PTI) Former prime minister Manmohan Singh established through the India-US nuclear deal that he knew how to do politics when it was really necessary, even though the deal is still "not appropriately appreciated", his close aide Montek Singh Ahluwalia said on Thursday.

Delivering a lecture on 'The Life and Legacy of Dr Manmohan Singh' as part of the prime minister's lecture series organised by the Centre for Contemporary Studies of Prime Ministers Museum and Library, the former Planning Commission deputy chairman said the present cooperation in the fields of defence and security would not have been possible had the nuclear deal not been signed.

Late Manmohan Singh’s wife Gursharan Kaur, and Nripendra Misra, Chairman, Prime Ministers Museum and Library, were present at the event.

Describing the India-US nuclear deal as a "masterly action" by former prime minister Singh, Ahluwalia said a large section of the Congress, the Left and even the BJP did not want the nuclear deal to be signed, and a lot of "political manipulation" had to be done to get it through.

“That was quite a masterly action by him (Singh). At the very end, it actually led to him offering his resignation to Mrs (Sonia) Gandhi, because she was under a lot of pressure. The Left actually said that ‘we will walk out of the government’, though it was not clear on what ground.

“But Mamnmohan Singh persuaded Sonia Gandhi, who allowed him to do this. The Left threatened a vote of no confidence, but he (Singh) finessed that by seeking a vote of confidence on the nuclear deal,” Montek Singh said in his lecture.

The Left voted against it, but Singh was able to mobilise the Samajwadi Party, for which he got help from then-President (A P J Abdul) Kalam, who in turn spoke to Mulayam Singh, he added.

"(It took) A lot of political manipulation by someone who wasn't viewed as a politician. I think the Indo-US nuclear deal established that he (Singh) knew how to do politics when he thought it was really necessary. And, I think, it still is not appropriately appreciated,” Montek Singh noted.

He also said that it would be an exaggeration to say that the entire Congress was against the Civil Nuclear deal, “but I can certainly say that a very large number of them were simply against it”.

“I don't think they appreciate what it means. That could be said to be a failing on the part of the government,” Montek Singh said.

The former deputy chairman of the Planning Commission, who was also Manmohan Singh's aide from his bureaucrat days, said at a time when there are talks of climate change and nuclear power, is India talking of having small modular reactors.

“... Unless we intend to use only Indian technology, which would be a huge restraint. I think we need to bring in foreign technology against which Indian technology could compete, and none of this would have been possible if the nuclear deal was not signed," he said.

Montek Singh also said that under the nuclear restrictions that we would undergo, India cannot import any Uranium because Uranium is part of prohibited nuclear trade as it had not signed the NPT (Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty).

“This would not matter if our domestic Uranium was enough to fuel all the reactors, but it was not, and our reactor capacity was slowly going down,” he said.

The Department of Atomic Energy was not in favour of the nuclear deal, at least some of them, particularly the retired people at the time, he said.

“While Manmohan Singh got Dr Kakodkar along while signing the deal, somehow all his predecessors got together and passed a resolution saying this would jeopardise something or the other,” he said.

“It is true that within the Congress, the Left and even to some extent the BJP, there was suspicion of the US – maybe because of the belief that during the Bangladesh (war), they sent an armoured nuclear carrier in the Bay of Bengal.

"People felt that we were getting unnecessarily close to the US and this was something that needed to be objected to. I think that was wrong. But, the question is whether it is good for us or not good for us, that is the issue,” Montek Singh said. PTI SKC ARI