No agreement with Left, says Govt

There is no deal between the two as part of which the Centre was allowed to go to IAEA, says the Govt.

Denying any agreement between the UPA and Left before the crucial Gujarat assembly elections by allowing it to go to IAEA, the Government on Monday said the civil nuclear deal with the US was of "paramount" importance for the country to end its nuclear apartheid.

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"No, there is no deal between the UPA and Left before Gujarat election as part of which it allowed the Centre to go to IAEA on talks on India specific safeguards...Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi can never think of making any compromise on any political expediency," Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma told reporters.

"The Congress and UPA feel that supreme national interests can only be served by India ending its long years of nuclear apartheid and reintegrate globally on the issue," he said.

"There are no political considerations in this regard," he said in reply to a question on CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat's statement his party allowed the UPA government to go for the IAEA talks because of the Gujarat elections.

Asked to comment on Karat's statement asking the UPA to end nuclear deal talks this month or to get ready for mid-term poll, Sharma said "he has his own opinion, we have our own."

He said that enhancing nuclear potential was a must for rapid economic growth of the country and asked parties to rise above political considerations on the issue. The concerns of the Left and opposition on the nuclear issue has been "duly addressed" by the Centre, Sharma added.