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Meerut, India — Generally I should have no reason to question the integrity and patriotism of the Indian communists. Rather, I should admire them when they talk of the downtrodden and raise issues related to the common man on one hand, and express their confidence in democracy and the democratic process on the other. However, their opposition to the Indo-U.S. nuclear deal raises the question of where their allegiance lies. It is apparently not with the people of India, the majority of whom support this deal.

Often when the communists -- leaving aside the gospel of nationalism and the national interest -- guided by external elements, talk of internationalism, they in fact flee from the national cause. In other words they distance themselves from the welfare of the common man.

It was in 1942, during the Quit India Movement aimed at securing India's independence from Britain, that the role of the Indian Communists proved the most shameful. Those familiar with the events of contemporary Indian history know that the communists initially responded to the call of Mahatma Gandhi and declared their participation in that movement. This was in fact because the Soviet Union, their guiding force, had a treaty with Germany, which was at war with Britain and its allies.

Times changed when Adolf Hitler, the Nazi dictator of Germany, broke the treaty and attacked the Soviet Union. In such a state of affairs, to counter the attacks of Germany a new alliance comprising the Soviet Union, Britain, the United States and France emerged at the international level.

The Indian communists, due to this new friendship between the Soviet Union and Britain, started favoring the British on one hand and opposing the Quit India Movement on the other. In support of Stalin -- who was himself an ardent supporter of building socialism in one country first, or putting the nation first -- the Indian communists, like opportunists, began to talk of internationalism. They forgot that without devotion to their nation first, talk of internationalism was baseless.

Again in 1948, when the whole nation was worried over the safety of innocent people facing atrocities in the state of Hyderabad, and its ruler the Nizam was seeking to free the state through anti-Indian activities, the hidden role of the communists was also filled with shame.

The behavior of one of the groups of Indian communists during the war between India and China in 1962, and of the other during the declaration of emergency in 1975, was definitely lamentable. At that time they neither gave a thought to the national interest nor cared for the common man; rather their thoughts and concerns were for their own guiding force.

Now once again, the communists' behavior in the context of the Indo-U.S. nuclear deal is insincere. India has contributed a lot to the entire world, including knowledge. Indians are wise; they know where their interests lie. That is why the majority of them are in favor of the nuclear deal. They wish for more economic and political cooperation with the United States.

The Indian communists should be more introspective; they should learn from the past that their responsibility is to care for their own countrymen, pay attention to their needs and wishes rather than serving another master. Failure to do so will cause them to lose more political ground than ever.

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(Dr. Ravindra Kumar is a renowned Gandhian scholar, India expert and writer. He is the former vice chancellor of CCS University in Meerut, India. He holds a doctorate in political science. ©Copyright Ravindra Kumar.)