UTTAR PRADESH POLITICIANS DISSECT US-INDIA

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 NEW DELHI 004396 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR SCA/INS, DRL E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/26/2017 TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL PINR IN SUBJECT: UTTAR PRADESH POLITICIANS DISSECT US-INDIA RELATIONSHIP Classified By: PolCouns Ted Osius for reasons 1.4 (B,D) ¶1. (C) Summary: On September 6, PolCouns met with a cross section of political leaders in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh (UP). As the group did not feel comfortable publicly critiquing the new government established under the leadership of Chief Minister Mayawati, the conversation quickly turned to Indo-U.S. relations, including the civil nuclear deal and how the U.S. can assist in promoting development in UP. This stands in contrast to previous gatherings of this nature, when the political classes of Lucknow engaged in naval-gazing that never extended beyond the borders of UP. End Summary. Mayawati's 100 Days -------------- ¶2. (C) Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) Bhagwan Pathak, from Chief Minister (CM) Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) spoke positively of the CM's first 100-plus days in office. He noted that she was reversing the trends of the past and creating a new social equilibrium that valued law and order, a contrast to the performance of the preceding Mulayam Singh Yadav regime. The conversation shifted quickly to U.S.-India relations and U.S. assistance after one of the participants admitted that it was uncomfortable to discuss the current political situation with all political parties represented in the room. What Have You Done For UP Lately -------------- ¶3. (C) BSP General Secretary Ashok Bajpai, the most vocal of the group, described UP as the heartland of India and asked what the U.S. has done for the state. He asserted that many GOI social programs have been proposed in the state but they have all failed to move UP forward. The problem the group identified was political in nature. While India is growing at a rate of 9 percent, UP is growing at 1.4 percent. Referencing World Bank loans to Andhra Pradesh and the marked progress seen in that state, Bajpai inquired if the U.S. could influence the World Bank to invest in infrastructure in UP. Mayawati has already asked the central government for 80,000 crore rupees (USD 2 billion) for development and to bring the state to 5 percent growth. Beyond these measures, Bajpai asked the U.S. to work to bring more businesses to UP. However, all party representatives present remarked that growth must be inclusive or it will exacerbate social and caste differences in the state. Civ-Nuke Opens Pandora's Box: China, Pakistan, Muslims, and UN Security Council -------------- ¶4. (C) Demonstrating detailed knowledge of the civil nuclear deal, the local party representatives asked many technical questions in addition to raising concerns about the strategic implications of the deal. In particular, they suspected that China would stand in the way of a rule change in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) and inquired how the U.S. would handle problems with it and other NSG members. PolCouns explained the USG would play the role of "sherpa," proposing an India-specific rule change to NSG members. He related that the U.S. would work with India to persuade NSG members that bringing India into the nuclear non-proliferation mainstream would benefit the system as a whole. ¶5. (C) Congress Party President Salman Khursheed -- replaced on September 24 as part of the Congress Party reshuffle -- wondered if the U.S. would offer a similar nuclear deal to Pakistan. He opined that that international community is not tough enough with Pakistan and asserted that strong action needed to be taken to discourage Pakistan from proceeding in its current direction on terrorism issues. Bajpai described the U.S.-India relationship as a "seesaw," balancing relations with India against those with Pakistan and China. NEW DELHI 00004396 002 OF 002 He bemoaned the sale of military hardware to Pakistan which has the potential to reach Lucknow and Delhi and pointedly asked if the U.S. was creating another Osama. Khursheed asked if the U.S. would "walk the extra mile" for India in the event of a serious nuclear face-off with its neighbors. Bajpai then asked pointedly, "how many more agreements do we have to sign before we get U.S. support?" for India's bid to a permanent seat on the UN Security Council. ¶6. (C) PolCouns responded that the U.S. did not view its relationship with India as part of a balancing act, but rather valued it on its own merits. PolCouns noted that the U.S. and India have converging interests, including: stemming the spread of terrorism, strengthening democracy and the rule of law, deriving advantages from the global economy, and countering weapons of mass destruction proliferation. The civil nuclear deal and the broader strategic partnership developing between the two nations, he stated, deepens trust and interlinks our countries like never before. ¶7. (C) Another participant articulated Muslim sentiments towards the U.S. which he said could hamper the deal. He proffered that Muslims feel singled out by the U.S. and its war on terror. Muslims feel aggrieved that the U.S. is involved in conflict in the Middle East, which can play out politically in India and could affect views of the nuclear deal. PolCouns responded that the U.S. is not targeting Islam but terrorists wherever they may be. All's Well That Ends Well -------------- ¶8. (C) Comment: Although political roundtables in Lucknow usually focus exclusively on the state of affairs in UP, at this point in time the political leadership in India's largest state arrived prepared and determined to discuss U.S.-India relations. The political confusion surrounding the nuclear deal at the national level appears to have percolated down to at least one key state capital and may indicate that U.S.-India relations will feature as an issue even in state-level politics. At the same time, across the political spectrum, queries regarding the burgeoning relationship were interspersed with requests for development assistance. Showing deference to the political regime in power in the state, BSP's Bajpai was given the opportunity for the last word. He repeated his request for the U.S. to assist in bringing investment and promoting development in the state. End Comment. Roundtable Participants -------------- -- Salman Khursheed, then-President, UP Congress Party; -- Kesri Nath Tripathi, President, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP); -- Ashok Bajpai, General Secretary, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP); -- Abid Ahmad, Vice President, UP Congress Party; -- Satya Deo Tripathi, General Secretary, UP Congress Party; -- Anu Tandon, Spokesperson, UP Congress Party; -- Rakesh Pratap Singh, Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA), BJP; -- Bhagwan Pathak, MLA, BSP; -- Ramesh Dixit, President, UP Nationalist Congress Party (NCP); -- Rajesh Pandey, MLA, UP Congress Party; -- S.K. Puri, General Secretary, Rashtriya Lok Dal -- Abdul Aleem Khan, Vice President, UP NCP WHITE