Friday, August 18 2006 16:48 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Barring a stray discordant voice, many MPs were today (Aug 18, 2006) fulsome in their praise for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's parliament speech allaying anxieties about crucial aspects of the civil nuclear deal with the US.

A day after Manmohan Singh assured parliament that India would never compromise on its strategic autonomy and independence of its foreign policy, many within the party felt that his virtuoso performance had effectively silenced critics of the nuclear deal.

"He proved his statesmanship as well as showed concern for his job. The prime minister's speech was sincere and he has virtually silenced his critics and allayed all fears of the deal," said Pawan Kumar Bansal, minister of state for finance.

Ditto N.S. Chittan, a Congress parliamentarian who felt Manmohan Singh was diplomatic and eloquent as he clearly and unambiguously stated that India was not moving away from its stated position.

Hotelier and Rajya Sabha MP Lalit Suri said, "I thought it was a straightforward and direct speech where he made it clear there was no compromise to the nation's strategic interests. Now it all depends on the final draft of the legislation."

As a parting quip, he added, "He always was a good leader but after Thursday he has shown that he is outspoken as well."

Manmohan Singh, in his 75-minute reply, after a seven-hour discussion on the nuclear deal, also reassured the Rajya Sabha that India would not be bound by any legislation passed in foreign countries and it was her right to determine its minimum credible deterrence.

Young Congress MP Jyotiraditya Scindia described Singh's speech as a landmark one and straight from the heart that touched a chord not only among MPs but all citizens.

"Apart from the content being so exhaustive, the speech also underlined the bright political and economic future of the country," said Scindia.

Industrialist turned Rajya Sabha MP, B.J. Panda of the Biju Janata Dal was relieved after the prime minister's address, saying he was satisfied that concerns of many MPs had been assuaged especially after developments that there were deviations form the July 18 statement.

The only dissonant voice in an otherwise effusive response to the address was Prabhu Nath Singh of the Janata Dal-United (JD-U) who believed the prime minister had not done enough to assure MPs that the country's interests would be compromised.

"He did not reflect the sense of the house or allay fears that the US would bring pressure on India at a later date," he said.