No N-deal if Left pulls the rug: Mukherjee

Amid hopes of conclusion of talks with IAEA next week, government has said it will not "like to" proceed with the Indo-US nuclear deal if the Left withdraws support but noted that pullout of the agreement will have "some adverse impact" on India's standing in the world.

External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee rejected suggestions that the UPA government's capacity to operationalise the deal has weakened after the Congress' debacle in Gujarat and Himachal assembly elections.

He made it clear that the government will not have the capacity to proceed with the deal if it plunges into a minority.

"We would not like to proceed with the deal if the Left parties withdraw support from the Government," he told Karan Thapar's 'India Tonight' programme on CNBC.

He, however, emphasised that the if India pulls out of the deal, it will have "some adverse impact" on the country's standing at the international level.

Mukherjee dubbed as "absolutely hypothetical" when asked what the government would do if a satisfactory bargain was achieved at the IAEA talks but Left still maintained its opposition.

"... Before we went to the IAEA, their (Left) position was that don't proceed further (on the deal). From that position we have improved something," he said.

Asked whether it meant that the Government will be able to "push" the Left, he replied, "it is not a question of pushing. It is a question of accepting the ground reality as and when it unfolds. Let us wait and see." India hopes to conclude the negotiations on safeguards agreement with IAEA during the talks next week after which the draft will be discussed by the UPA-Left committee.