India submits nuclear accord to IAEA

By Alistair Scrutton

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India took an important step needed to implement a nuclear deal with the United States as the government tried on Wednesday to ensure its survival after its communist allies withdrew in protest at the accord.

The step involved sending India's draft nuclear safeguards accord with the International Atomic Energy Agency to the U.N. watchdog's board of governors for approval. An IAEA spokeswoman said on Wednesday this had been done at New Delhi's request.

Communist parties, which provided the Indian government with a parliamentary majority for the last four years, formally told India's president on Wednesday they had ended their support and requested a no-confidence vote in parliament.

The withdrawal has left Prime Minister Manmohan Singh needing other parties to ensure his ruling coalition survives and escapes an early election, as well as finalising the nuclear deal.

The IAEA announcement came despite Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee's statement on Tuesday that India would seek approval from the nuclear watchdog only after the government secures the vote of confidence.

Dates for both the Indian no-confidence vote and an IAEA board of governors meeting to consider India's nuclear document were unclear. Both were expected, though, later this month.

India's government, led by Singh's Congress party, believes it can win the no-confidence vote having secured the backing of the regional Samajwadi Party, but the vote could be close.

"The taste of the pudding is in the eating," Mukherjee was quoted as saying in local media when asked if the government had enough lawmakers.