A political war of words erupted on Friday over the India-Australia civil nuclear agreement, with the Congress accusing the BJP of falsely portraying Australia’s decision to export uranium to India as a diplomatic breakthrough achieved solely under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The controversy began after BJP IT Department head Amit Malviya claimed that Australia had refused to sell uranium to India in 2010 because New Delhi was not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), but that under Prime Minister Modi’s leadership, the two countries had successfully concluded a uranium export agreement.
Responding to the claim, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh asserted that the foundation for Australia’s uranium exports to India had been laid much earlier. He said that on December 4, 2011, then Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard secured her party’s approval to allow uranium sales to India following the landmark India-US Civil Nuclear Agreement of October 2008.
Ramesh accused the BJP of attempting to rewrite history, saying its leaders and supporters should “do their homework better.” He also shared media reports from December 2011 to support his contention that Australia’s Labour Party had endorsed uranium exports to India during the UPA government’s tenure.
The Congress leader reiterated that the India-Australia civil nuclear cooperation agreement signed this week was made possible because of the India-US Nuclear Cooperation Agreement, which became law in October 2008 despite opposition from the BJP at the time.
Earlier, Ramesh had remarked that while the Congress “creates turning points,” the BJP “specialises in U-turning points,” alleging that the ruling party was taking credit for initiatives launched during the previous government.
The exchange followed the signing of a series of strategic agreements between India and Australia after talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese. The two countries concluded pacts covering civil nuclear energy, maritime security, critical minerals, cyber cooperation, critical technologies, supply chains, and defence collaboration.
The civil nuclear agreement is expected to facilitate the commercial supply of Australian uranium to India, providing fuel for the country’s expanding civilian nuclear power programme and further strengthening the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the two nations.
