Left to Pranab: 'That time has come'

Following is the full text of the letter by the four Left parties to the External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee announcing their withdrawal of support to the United Progressive Alliance government:

Dear Shri Pranab Mukherjee

This is regarding your letter dated July 7, 2008.

You have stated that a meeting of the United Progressive Alliance-Left Committee on Indo-US Civil Nuclear Cooperation will be held on July 10. We wish to point out that in the sixth meeting of the committee held on November 16, 2007, it was decided, regarding the talks with the International Atomic Energy Agency, that: 'The government will proceed with the talks and the outcome will be presented to the Committee for its consideration before it finalises its findings'.

Till now, the "outcome of the talks", ie, the text of the Safeguards Agreements negotiated with the IAEA Secretariat has not been made available to the committee. Without the text, the committee cannot come to any findings. Since the UPA has refused to provide the text to the members of the committee, no purpose will be served by having a meeting on July 10.

Further, your proposal for a meeting on the 10th is rendered meaningless since the prime minister, while travelling abroad, has chosen to announce that the government will be going to the Board of Governors of the IAEA "very soon". As you are aware, the Left parties had decided that if the government goes to the IAEA Board of Governors, they will withdraw support.

In view of the prime minister's announcement, that time has come.

Signed by

Prakash Karat, A B Bardhan, Debabrata Biswas and T J Chandrachoodan