Why did Dhankhar resign? The Inside Story
Speculations continue about the exact reasons behind the abrupt resignation of Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar. The fanfare with which Dhankhar was elected as Vice-President was not there when he exited silently. There was neither a farewell function nor were there any speeches by top leaders extolling his tenure.
Why did Jagdeep Dhankhar resign abruptly? I have some inside information why he had to quit.
Actually, he was becoming an embarrassment for the government and he was creating hurdles because of which he had to resign.
Let me explain how the confrontation began.
One, since the time Dhankhar became Chairman of Rajya Sabha, he sought to give the impression that he was very close to the top leaders of the government and whatever he does has the blessings of the top leadership. You may remember, how a Trinamool Congress member made a mimicry of the Vice-President inside the parliament premises and Rahul Gandhi had circulated a video of that mimicry. The reason behind that incident was to project a narrative that as Chairman, Dhankhar used to regularly clash with opposition leaders. They were convinced that Dhankhar was not allowing them to speak in the House and insulting them at the behest of the government. This created regular confrontation between the government and opposition.
Two, some months ago, Dhankhar Sahib made direct attacks on the judiciary. He targeted the Supreme Court and spoke about the ‘supremacy of Parliament’. Most of the judges began feeling that the Vice-President was doing this at the behest of the government, since he was projecting himself to be close to the top leadership. The situation came to a pass when a confrontation between the judiciary and the executive was about to begin.
Three, when Dhankhar Sahib was persuaded to tone down his stance, he reportedly became angry and started reminding ruling party leaders how, as Vice-President, he had been defending the government umpteen times and how he put the prestige of his post at stake because of this. The chasm began to widen.
Four, Dhankhar Sahib began carrying his grievances about the top leadership to RSS leaders and several top ministers. He also mentioned his grievances while meeting opposition leaders and senior media persons. His grievance was that nobody in the government was listening to him, he was feeling suffocated, and he wanted that his pleas be forwarded to the Prime Minister, otherwise he could take some extreme step. This was a sort of threat – a direct tussle with the government.
In the final phase, Dhankhar Sahib started throwing tantrums. He met senior Congress leaders and gave time to meet Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal. He narrated his problems to them. He tried to take up the matter of impeachment of Justice Verma in his hands, knowing that the government was moving the same motion in Lok Sabha. When top leaders of the government felt that the Chairman could create an embarrassing situation in Rajya Sabha, a situation of open confrontation could arise, a final phone call was made.
Without mincing words, the message was conveyed that if Dhankhar Sahib did not change his attitude, the ruling party could even bring a motion of impeachment against him. Dhankhar Sahib did not, in his wildest dreams, think about this. He made a mistake in his assessment about the top leadership, his gamble fell flat, and as a final step, he decided to take the exit route.
Dhankar’s resignation: Is health the real reason?
The sudden exit of Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar has come as a surprise for political circles with many speculating about the reasons behind his resignation. He had two years before his term was to end in August, 2027.
In his eight-paragraph resignation letter sent to President Droupadi Murmu at around 9.20 pm on Monday, Dhankhar has written: “To prioritise health care and abide by medical advice, I hereby resign as Vice-President of India, effective immediately, in accordance with Article 67(a) of the Constitution.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday tweeted on X: “Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar Ji has got many opportunities to serve our country in various capacities, including as the Vice President of India. Wishing him good health.”
Dhankhar underwent a cardiac procedure at AIIMS in March this year after he complained of uneasiness. On June 25, he fainted while delivering a speech in Nainital. On Monday, he appeared to be cool while presiding over the Rajya Sabha proceedings till 4:30 pm. Dhankhar had a meeting with opposition leaders on Monday at 6 pm. Two hours later he called on President Murmu in an unscheduled meeting to tender his resignation.
Though Dhankhar cited health as the reason for his exit, there are few takers for this theory. Some say, he could have sent his resignation on health grounds earlier too, but why did he choose the first day of Monsoon session?
Speculations are rife about the real reason behind his exit. There are reports that the top leadership in the government was not satisfied with his style of working and Dhankhar was unwilling to change his stance. He had been openly expressing his opinion on almost every major topic. He did not even desist from making political remarks. He had been consistently saying about the ‘supremacy of Parliament’ vis-à-vis the judiciary, particularly after the cash recovery incident.
On Monday, Dhankhar had accepted a notice from opposition members for a motion to remove Justice Yashwant Varma, who was transferred from Delhi HC to Allahabad HC, after a massive cash recovery at his residence in Delhi. As Chairman of Rajya Sabha, Dhankhar accepted the notice and asked the secretary general of Rajya Sabha to take necessary steps.
Apart from this, Dhankhar had been making acerbic remarks against some opposition leaders inside the House and this was not taken well in political circles.
A perception was building among the public that whatever remarks Dhankhar was making, was at the behest of the government. This was not acceptable to the government. It did not want such a perception to be built. Dhankhar was unwilling to listen to advice, and finally he gave his resignation.
Dhankhar is not a person who can keep his views close to his chest. Sooner or later, he will himself reveal the real reasons behind his exit.
Nobody killed 189 people in Mumbai
Bombay High Court on Monday quashed the conviction of all 12 accused found guilty nearly 10 years ago for the serial train blasts that took place in 2006 killing 189 and injuring 824 people in a matter of six minutes.
The special bench of Justice Anil Kilor and Justice Shyam Chandak severely criticized the prosecution for the ham-handed way in which the probe was conducted. The High Court refused to confirm the death sentence given to five convicts and life imprisonment sentence given to seven others by the special court. The High Court acquitted all the twelve while directing their immediate release.
Maharashtra ATS had conducted the inquiry. In 2015, a Special TADA court of Mumbai had given death sentence to Faisal Sheikh, Kamal Ansari, Ahtesham Siddiqui and Naveed Khan (the fifth died during appeal). Seven convicts, Muhammad Sajid Ansari, Amuhammad Ali, Dr Tanveer Ansari, Majid Shafi, Muzammil Sheikh, Sohail Sheikh and Zameer Sheikh, who were given life terms, were acquitted.
In its judgement, the High Court said, “confessions obtained from accused by ATS are unreliable and inadmissible”. The High Court went through 44,000 pages of documents and delivered the judgement, saying the reliability of prosecution witnesses was questionable.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said, the state government would appeal against the HC verdict in Supreme Court.
It is a painful truth that 189 innocent people lost their lives and more than 800 people were injured because of the serial train blasts. The scary visuals of that day still remain etched in the memory of people living in Mumbai.
It is sad that even after 19 years, there is no answer to the question: Who carried out those blasts? Who are responsible for the death of more than 180 people? If those who were acquitted today were innocent, then why were they kept in jails for 18 years?
This is gross incompetence on part of our investigation agencies. The contrasts in the judgements of the trial court and High Court are shocking.
The trial court considered statements of prosecution witnesses as correct, but the High Court rejected them.
The prosecution provided concrete evidence about the RDX used for the blasts. This was accepted by the trial court, but the High Court refused to accept them as admissible evidence.
The trial court found the confessional statements of the accused as admissible, but the High Court said, the accused were tortured to extract confessions and hence the statements are inadmissible.
One must ponder why the trial court and high court completely differed as far as confessional statements, evidences and witnesses’ statements are concerned.
How can it be that the 12 accused persons who were convicted by the trial court 10 years ago, have now been given a clean chit by the High Court, and all statements and evidences produced by the prosecution were thrown into the waste basket?
What reply will the nation give to the families of those innocent people who were killed in the blasts?
The matter will now go to the Supreme Court and the matter will remain in limbo for another few years. It is a matter of shame that nobody knows who is guilty for the death of 189 innocent people.