The alliance wish list

The alliance wish list
The BJP may have struck a deal with the Congress for the support it has offered to the government on the N-liability Bill. The price that the government will have to pay will be to go soft on Narendra Modi in the Sohrabuddin case. The opposition parties damning the deal as ‘opportunistic politics’ is rather amusing (‘Bill unites BJP, Congress’, DNA, August 19). Were the deals struck with Lalu Prasad Yadav, Mulayam Singh Yadav and Mayavati to give them reprieve from CBI inquiries in return for political support any more principled? Honestly, a permanent alliance between the Congress and the BJP, strictly based on a common minimum programme, could end the present confrontationist politics and make governance more effective. This is possible since the two parties have similar views on several issues of national interest. 
 —Subramanian Venkataraman, Mumbai

BJP’s move welcome
Apropos the edit ‘Politics, not merit, shapes N-liability bill’ (DNA, August 19), the support extended by the BJP on the N-liability bill in the interest of the smooth functioning of the Parliament is welcome. Without passage of the bill proposed to be tabled in the house on August 26 the Indo-US nuclear deal wouldn’t be operative and the ambitious plan of generating 30,000 MW of
N-power by 2030 wouldn’t succeed. Issues such as allowing private players into power generation, possible impact of radiation on workers, and raising of upper limit may be incorporated in the draft after due discussion with members of the house.
—Achyut Railkar, Mumbai

Fast-track gag
One of the distinctive features of the Congress-led UPA-II government is its fast-paced implementation of policy decisions. The latest feather in its cap became evident during the ongoing discussion in the Parliament over the contentious Nuclear Liabilities Bill. When Lalu, a strong opponent of the deal, raised the bogey of a secret understanding between the Congress and the BJP, the CBI immediately swung into action by issuing a summons to the former Bihar supremo over the decade-old fodder scam case.
—Arun Malankar, Mumbai