New Delhi, Aug. 2: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and defence minister Pranab Mukherjee have begun meeting allies one by one to discuss three areas of concern.

The Indo-US nuclear deal, the bill on a quota for the other backward classes in higher education and divestment are on the agenda.

Last night, the trio met Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad. This morning, it was the turn of Mehbooba Mufti of the People’s Democratic Party and Nationalist Congress Party’s Sharad Pawar.

In the evening, Singh, Sonia and Mukherjee were slated to meet DMK leaders Dayanidhi Maran and T.R. Baalu, and Shibu Soren of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha. Discussions with all partners are expected to be complete tomorrow.

Sources said that while the allies the three have met so far were not in favour of Parliament moving a collective resolution on the nuclear deal — as demanded by the Left and the Samajwadi Party — the RJD and the NCP insisted on bringing the quota bill in the ongoing session.

“It is a commitment made in the UPA meeting and we have to honour it. It was a political decision and nothing has happened on the ground or otherwise to change it,” said a source.

This afternoon, over a working lunch of soup, sandwiches and cutlets, the Prime Minister met some cabinet colleagues in Parliament. They included Mukherjee, finance minister P. Chidambaram, Pawar, HRD minister Arjun Singh, science and technology minister Kapil Sibal and minister of state in the Prime Minister’s Office Prithviraj Chavan.

The sources said Chidambaram made it clear that whether the OBC quota was implemented in one shot or in phases, the government would have to raise at least Rs 16,500 crore for infrastructure and expansion. Allowing the government to divest shares in PSUs was the most feasible and practical way of raising funds, the minister added.

This is the argument Singh, Sonia and Mukherjee would use with the Left and the DMK. “Either allow us to divest without raising objections or the OBC bill will be a dead letter,” said a source.

By putting forward this condition, the Prime Minister hopes to soften up the DMK, which created a brouhaha over the cabinet’s decision to divest shares in the Nevyeli Lignite Corporation and forced Singh to put a moratorium on divestment.

Finance apart, the Prime Minister is reportedly concerned that the OBC bill should stand legal scrutiny once passed and not be challenged like the anti-demolition act. “It’s a tightrope walk. We would like to see a less contentious bill, but if it’s too goody-goody, the political purpose won’t be served,” admitted a cabinet minister.

The sources said the Prime Minister would make a statement on the nuclear deal, based on the joint statement with the US on July 18, 2005. But, they added, this would be “his statement” and “we cannot allow the Left to put words in his mouth”.

However, the Prime Minister does not want to provoke the Left. He will speak to its leaders as well as those of the BJP and the Samajwadi Party, the sources said.