As government raised the pitch on the Indo-US nuclear deal in the face of Washington's insistence on a May deadline, the Left allies have also stepped up pressure by seeking an immediate meeting of UPA-Left Committee on the issue by March 15.CPI(M) General Secretary Prakash Karat has written to External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, government's key interlocutor with the allies on the deal, asking for immediate convening of a meeting of the UPA-Left Committee on the nuclear deal by mid-March.CPI leader D Raja, a member of the Committee, met Karat this morning and discussed the strategy on getting from the government its position on whether it wants to go ahead with the deal despite Left's opposition to it.Sources said Karat's letter comes against the backdrop of reports that the text of the draft India-specific Safeguards Agreement with the IAEA is more or less ready and the Left parties would like to have a discussion on that.The Left missive also assumes significance in the context of the American deadline of May for the 123 agreement to be sent to the US Congress.It is necessary for the government to complete the IAEA agreement by March end so that they can proceed to the Nuclear Suppliers Group for getting a waiver to do nuclear commerce with other countries."The Americans have set a deadline for the government. The Left parties will also have to set a deadline for the government. The next meeting of the UPA-Left Committee will be crucial," a senior Left leader told PTI.
