Ahead of the crucial Left-United Progressive Alliance committee meeting in Delhi on Friday on the Indo-US nuclear deal, the outside supporters of the Centre, after allowing the government to approach the International Atomic Energy Agency, on Thursday said they did not want the agreement to be operationalised at any cost.

Communist Party of India-Marxist general secretary Prakash Karat said the deal is not in the interest of the nation. The Left parties are strongly opposed to it, Karat said.

Karat told reporters in Indore that majority of the parties are against the deal and therefore, the government should go ahead with it only after taking the opinion of the members.

His CPI counterpart A B Bardhan said in Ludhiana that his party continued to strongly oppose the Indo-US nuclear deal and does not want it to become operational at any cost.

Asked about the softening of stand by the Left, he said, "A lunch or dinner with the prime minister or the external affairs minister does not change its (Left) stand on the issue."

"Meeting the prime minister or foreign minister on the issue at a lunch or dinner did not mean any softening of the Left stand on this vital issue," Bardhan said.

The Left parties may ask the government to respond to its questions on some major issues concerning the deal at the UPA-Left meeting before giving clearance to government to approach the IAEA for negotiating a India-specific safeguards agreement.