Nuclear deal or early polls, India may learn soon

By Krittivas Mukherjee

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's government and its communist allies meet on Wednesday over a civilian nuclear deal with the United States, in talks that could decide if the controversial energy pact or the ruling coalition survives.

The communists, who prop up the ruling coalition in parliament, say they will bring the government down if it pushes through the pact, a threat that last year saw Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's coalition delay a showdown over a deal.

The government's non-communist coalition members, worried that inflation at a 13-year high could destroy their re-election chances in a snap poll, are pushing Singh to avoid a political confrontation and delay the deal.

But Singh is reluctant to publicly abandon a deal in which he has invested a lot of his personal reputation, giving rise to media speculation that he is now ready to sacrifice the Congress-led government with less than a year before polls.

"There is no doubt that the meeting is extremely crucial and we expect the Congress to formally announce its decision," said communist leader Nilotpal Basu.

Singh says the pact is vital to end India's long exclusion from global civilian nuclear trade, and Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee described it as the "most potent means" for achieving energy security for Asia's third-largest economy.

The communists claim the deal, which gives India access to U.S. nuclear fuel and technology, would damage India's independent foreign policy and security.