Yet another controversy has broken out over the nuclear deal with American President George W Bush pitching the 123 Agreement to the US Congress as something that is not legally binding.
President Bush's letter to the US Congress says the clause on fuel supply assurances is not legally binding on America.
Bush's letter to Congress:
"In Article 5(6) the Agreement records certain political commitments concerning reliable supply of nuclear fuel given to India. The Agreement does not, however, transform these political commitments into legally binding commitments because the Agreement, like other US agreements of its type, is intended as a framework agreement."
Sources in New Delhi say they want a clarification and that they find the distinction between legally binding and political commitments mystifying.
A section of the Indian government is already upset with the secret State Department letter which essentially said that fuel supplies are not assured if India tests. Indian officials have told NDTV this goes against the very basis of the agreement.
The nuclear fuel supply clause has become a critical issue ever since a secret US State Department letter was released by Senator Howard Berman - a strong critic of the deal.
Voices from India and America insist that India retains its sovereign right to test but the possible consequences of testing are apparently still open to interpretation.
US says it is not walking away from the commitments in the 123 agreement and there may be domestic political reasons for President Bush's letter.
With America spelling its stand fairly clearly it's now up to India to decide what to make of this latest letter.
The letter at odds with the 123 agreement between the US and India is already giving the BJP and Left new fodder against the government.
D Raja of the CPI told NDTV that the letter vindicates what the Left has always maintained that India has not got a clean and unconditional waiver contrary to what Bush has been saying.
The BJP has got fresh ammunition to take on the UPA particularly on a day when the party's national conclave has begun in Bangalore. Senior BJP leader Jaswant Singh said the government must debate the issue in Parliament.
However, the Congress says one should not read too much into the contents of the Bush letter because the 123 agreement has a much higher standing than any US domestic law.
Even as the NSG was meeting in Vienna, speaking on what's turning out to be a killer amendment, India's Chief of Atomic Energy Anil Kakodkar in an exclusive interview to NDTV had made it clear that India will not undertake any legally-binding commitments on testing.
Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi who said India had nothing to worry about as the 123 agreement was the only document that matters.
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