Vineeta Pandey

New Delhi: Not convinced about the need for the nuclear deal with the United States, hundreds of non-resident Indians (NRIs) and persons of Indian origin (PIOs) plan to corner Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) that begins on Tuesday.

The anti-deal NRIs, mainly from the Middle-East and South Asia regions, say they are not convinced by the Indian government’s arguments and would seek an audience with the PM to air their views.

Many would, in fact, try to lap up the opportunity when he inaugurates the PBD on Tuesday. On the other hand, many NRIs in the United States are lobbying for the India-US Ndeal.

But the expats against the deal maintain that it does not suit India and claim it is a compromise on foreign policy.

“I am not anti-America,” said Mohammad Sabih Bukhari, an NRI industrialist from Qatar, adding: “Why is such a deal necessary? Going by the past experiences of dealing with America, isn’t it clear that they (the US) can’t be trusted for long? The US is quite capable of taking a U-turn on any deal which doesn’t suit it beyond a point.We would like to ask the PM why his government is putting so much at stake and why is it so keen on going ahead with the deal?”

These NRIs have come armed with questions to ask the prime minister and other ministers and many say they would not mind debating the whole issue during the PBD sessions. The plan may actually leave many ministers ducking out of the discussion.

But some NRIs indicated they would like to meet the members of the Left parties and the BJP to lend support to them on the issue.

Prabal Arora from Fiji, a young man into tourism sector, argued: “I am against the American government’s policies. They can be big bullies and India won’t be able to handle that kind of bullying,” said Arora. He is clearly echoing the views of fellow NRIs in Fiji.Though the US NRIs have been lobbying in favour of the deal, voices of dissent are being heard even among them.

“If the N-deal goes through, India may have to become subservient to the US. It is certainly not in India’s interest in getting tied up with US policy,” said PIO Ajay Sinha, an IIT graduate settled in Georgia.

The US-India Political Action Committee, an influential body of Indian expatriates, attended last year’s PBD functions and met Bhartiya Janata Party President Rajnath Singh and leaders of the Left party who have expressed apprehension over the nuclear deal.

Source : DNA