"I believe that such cooperation is good for us, for our energy security and for the world," he said.

Dr Singh surprised the Bharatiya Janata Party by hailing its leader Atal Bihari Vajpayee as the 'Bhishma Pitamah of Indian politics'. He appealed to the former Prime Minister to rise above narrow party politics and support the Indo-US nuclear deal.

"Bhishma Pitamah of Indian politics Atal Bihari Vajpayee should listen to his conscience and let national interest prevail upon narrow politics," Singh said in the Rajya Sabha, seeking the support of his predecessor on the nuclear deal.

The Prime Minister also expressed hope that India and Pakistan would work on a framework for enduring peace.

"India wants to live in peace with Pakistan. The destinies of our two nations are interlinked. We need to put the past behind us," he said.

Taking on the BJP, Dr Singh claimed that the government's historic initiative to waive farmers' loans on an unprecedented scale was to meet the 'unpaid distress bill' left behind by the erstwhile National Democratic Alliance government.

However, in a major jolt to the UPA, the Communist Party of India warned the government of withdrawl of support if it goes ahead with the Indo-US nuclear deal.

"Should the government decide to push ahead with the deal, we will not and cannot be a party to go along with it. We will then be left with no other option than to withdraw our support to the government," Communist Party of India general secretary A B Bardhan said in a letter to Dr Singh.

"Your talk of trying to build a consensus sounds hollow when you are fully aware that no such consensus is possible -- a fact revealed in the Parliamentary debate itself," the CPI veteran said.

Image: US Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during his India visit in January, had warned that the clock is ticking on the Indo-US nuclear deal.
Photograph: Raveendran/AFP/Getty Images

Also See: The India-US nuclear tango

Next