'PM provoked Left by calling Atal Bhishm'

THE DEAL MAKER: The PM is the Government as far as the nuclear deal is concerned, says Bardhan.

          

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A B Bardhan: Karan, are you devil’s advocate of the Government? I do not know exactly what you are, but let me tell you one thing. The Government has not gone ahead up till now. If it does, they will have to face the consequences. And Mr Pranab Mukherjee knows it well and therefore has said that a minority government may not be able to sign it.

Karan Thapar: Mr Mukherjee is only saying that to appease you and to reduce the temperature.

A B Bardhan: Whatever it is.

Karan Thapar: You know and I know that the Americans have made clear that leave aside the minority government, a caretaker government…

A B Bardhan: Exactly, and that is why I got provoked and I told the Prime Minister that these were suggestive statements he made.

Karan Thapar: It may be, but come back to what I am saying. You will call their bluff, but in the end, they’ll call yours because you threaten to withdraw support and then when you’ve done it three times…

A B Bardhan: Let us see, only time will tell who’s calling whose bluff.

Karan Thapar: Am saying to you that your behaviour on the deal is a bit like the big bad wolf’s in the children’s fairy story. You huff and you puff but you know you can’t blow the house down.

A B Bardhan: See, they are so afraid of the house falling that they are not going ahead.

Karan Thapar: Then tell me this, you are going to stick to your threat of withdrawing support, the critical question is this: Is withdrawal of support the same as bringing the Government down?

A B Bardhan: We withdraw our support, whether the Government is reduced to minority and continues or not, it is up to Parliament to see. Whether at that time the Government itself decides to dissolve Parliament and become a caretaker is also there. Actually, Richard Boucher has suggested to the Government…

Karan Thapar: Let’s first clarify the situation. You’re saying to me that if the Government goes ahead with the deal, you’ll withdraw support but you’re also saying that the Government could continue as a minority.

A B Bardhan: No, no, I’m not saying it could continue, I’m saying it would become a minority. If this minority government wants to sign a deal, let us see.

Karan Thapar: Will you, after you withdraw support, pass a vote of no-confidence against the Government?

A B Bardhan: That we will think of at that time.

Karan Thapar: That’s a clear of saying you’re not going to do it.

A B Bardhan: This is not conditional.

Karan Thapar: One more quick question – if after you withdraw support, the BJP moves a vote of no-confidence against the Government, will you vote against the Government or will you abstain?

A B Bardhan: I don’t think any such situation will arise if the Government becomes a minority, it will have to dissolve Parliament.

Karan Thapar: Not at all. Minority governments have continued – Narsimha Rao ruled for five years as a minority government, signed in the WTO as a minority government.

A B Bardhan: Minority governments have not gone ahead.

Karan Thapar: He signed in the WTO as a minority, that was even more important than what we are talking about.

A B Bardhan: WTO was signed by Pranab Mukherjee

Karan Thapar: Yes, but Narsimha Rao was the Prime Minister.

A B Bardhan: No, that time he wasn’t the…

Karan Thapar: Yes, he definitely was.

A B Bardhan: He started as a minority government, he wasn’t a minority.

Karan Thapar: He was in the minority all the way through.

A B Bardhan: He had managed but he…

Karan Thapar: Let me put something to you. You are making it very clear that there is a big difference between withdrawing support and bringing the Government down. You can make it a minority but the minority can continue for a whole year

A B Bardhan: There is a big difference as far as the Government, its conscience and its policy is concerned. And its willingness to sign a deal, even if it is a minority.

Karan Thapar: Conscience is a matter of morality…

A B Bardhan: The senior-most minister concerned directly with the deal has himself said that, “I do not think that a minority government can sign it.”

Karan Thapar: That was only for your ears, that was only for public appeasement.

A B Bardhan: What do you mean? The minister makes a statement only for my sake?

Karan Thapar: The bottomline I am taking away from this interview is that A B Bardhan will reduce this government to a minority but a minority can continue for a full year and that minority could sign the deal if it wants to. That’s the bottomline.

A B Bardhan: No sir, that will mean that this government has lost ethos, lost confidence, lost everything.

Karan Thapar: Yes, maybe, lost its morality but stays in power.