Rediff News

July 30: Former external affairs minister Jaswant Singh has said that he has given the name of the US 'mole' in the Prime Minister's Office during the tenure of P V Narasimha Rao to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

The senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader revealed this on Saturday on the sidelines of a function in Mumbai at which his book -- A Call to Honour -- was released.

"I had requested for personal time with the prime minister twice but there was no response both times. Therefore yesterday, I sent the entire text of the letter to him, with no names omitted, no details removed. The letter has been with him for the past 24 hours now. It is up to him to do whatever is right in the national interest," Singh said.

"I have never used the word 'mole,' even in the book. However, it generated so much excitement and the prime minister charged me with lacking in decency. He is a big man, he can use big words, but I find it difficult to assume the idioms of an 'akhara' in a village," Singh said.

He also criticised, what he called, India's 'subservient' US policy, saying: "We have to stop being dewy-eyed about the United States. The US objective to shackle India's nuclear capability remains constant. Being natural allies with the US does not mean being naturally subservient to US interests."

"What the US is doing in our region today is greatly detrimental to our interests. As far as the nuclear deal is concerned, both governments have not been candid about the purpose of the agreement," he added.

Singh also relived his 'period of torment' during the Kandahar crisis saying: "How do you choose between two wrongs? Letting three terrorists go unpunished was a great moral wrong and letting 166 people die was also a great moral wrong. We chose life."