Jagdeep Dhankhar-government rift behind his shock exit as Vice-President?

NEW DELHI: A day after the sudden decision of Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar to quit his post abruptly, political circles in the Capital were agog with speculation and multiple theories on Tuesday behind the move, which seems to have caught the government unawares.

There were strong grounds to believe that there was more to the abrupt resignation of the Vice President than “prioritise health care,” as he appeared fit and fine during the day when he presided over the proceedings in the Rajya Sabha. He had two more years to go before his scheduled retirement in August 2027. The only acknowledgement from the government came after nearly 15 hours when Prime Minister Narendra Modi put out a brief post, and all the leading government figures refrained from offering any comment.

Modi said 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 was not even given an opportunity to address the Rajya Sabha for the last time. The Vice President is also the ex-officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha. The usual praise and appreciation for him were missing from the BJP-led NDA’s ruling alliance, indicating that the government was probably happy to see him go. Incidentally, the only appreciation for him came from the opposition bloc, which had signed a notice last year to impeach him for his alleged biases.

One of the theories doing the rounds in the political corridors was Dhankhar’s move to kickstart the impeachment process of former Delhi High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma in the Rajya Sabha. Many believe that this could have prompted his sudden resignation on Monday night.

As the government wanted to bring the impeachment notice against Justice Varma only in the Lok Sabha, the move by Dhankhar could have upset the government. Justice Varma faces removal after an undisclosed amount of money was found at his residence in the Capital in March.

The impeachment notice was signed by 63 MPs on Monday, all from the Opposition parties. There was not even a single MP from the BJP-NDA alliance who signed the notice in the Rajya Sabha. Probably, the ruling alliance did not get a whiff of the preparation of such a notice.

Dhankhar announced in the House on Monday, “I need to inform you that I have received notice of motion under Article 217(1)(B) read with Article 218 and Article 124… to constitute a statutory committee for removal of Justice Yashwant Varma. This has been received by me today. It is signed by more than 50 members of the Council of States.”

It clearly upset the government’s plan to remove Justice Varma by passing the impeachment motion in the Lok Sabha and appeared to have shifted the limelight to the opposition and the Vice President. According to well-placed sources, the government was upset because it had taken a strong stand on corruption in the judiciary and saw Dhankhar’s move as risk-ridden in diluting its leadership on the issue.

The government also felt that the move by the Opposition aimed to undercut its own motion in this regard in the Lok Sabha, for which it had collected 145 signatures – the minimum for Lok Sabha is 100 – including those of the Opposition. Incidentally, in the run-up to the monsoon session, the government had made it clear that it would move a motion to impeach the judge.

Senior government ministers swung into action by getting many Rajya Sabha MPs of the BJP and its allies to put their signatures on a document, which some members said was for a similar notice to ensure that opposition members alone were not behind the exercise in the Upper House.

Many other signatories maintained silence, while a few stated that they were not aware of the details as they signed a paper that did not carry details of the matter, drawing the conjecture that it was related to Dhankhar. A couple of senior leaders, however, insisted that it was all aimed at ensuring that National Democratic Alliance MPs were also part of the notice for Varma’s removal.

Some observers noted that Dhankhar, who wore the hat of a senior lawyer before becoming West Bengal governor in 2019, had taken the lead in taking on the judiciary over a host of issues.

Another development that suggested the government’s unhappiness with Dhankhar was the absence of the Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha, J P Nadda, and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju from the meeting of the Business Advisory Committee, which includes members of different parties and decides on the House agenda, at 4.30 PM on Monday.

Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh speculated in a post on X that something serious clearly occurred between 1 PM and 4.30 PM, which prompted Nadda and Rijiju to skip the BAC “deliberately.” This naturally did not go well with Dhankhar, he claimed.

Nadda told reporters that both of them were busy with official work and had informed the Rajya Sabha Chairman’s office about it.

A few BJP members were also critical of Dhankhar’s decision to allow the Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, to launch a sharp attack on the government over Operation Sindoor during the Zero Hour, when the ruling alliance had already expressed its willingness for a discussion on the issue.

Dhankhar, 74, announced his surprise resignation on Monday night. His outspoken views on the judiciary, occasional swipes at the establishment over farmers’ issues, and private views that were considered less charitable of the government than his public utterances are now being seen as the reasons for his worsening ties with the ruling alliance.

On Tuesday, the opposition claimed the reasons behind Dhankhar’s resignation as the Vice President are “far deeper” than the health issues cited by him. The Congress said that his resignation speaks highly of him but poorly of those who got him elected to the post.

The opposition also said the Prime Minister could have been more gracious and asked the government to clarify the Vice President’s resignation.

Congress general secretary in charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh, said, “PM’s non-post on X regarding Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar’s forced resignation has only added to the mystery of his abrupt exit. Surely the PM could have been a bit more gracious -- he is, after all, the supreme master of hypocrisy.”

“The kisanputra is being denied even a dignified farewell,” he said in a post on X.

Congress general secretary (organisation) K. C. Venugopal said the government has to clarify why the Vice President resigned.

Congress MP Akhilesh Prasad Singh said he had met Dhankhar on Monday at around 5.30 PM, and he was in a good mood. “This development is shocking, and the ruling side should intervene and bring him back.”

The AAP leader Sanjay Singh demanded a “clear explanation” from the government for the sudden resignation of Dhankhar, calling it a matter of “serious concern.”

Meanwhile, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh on Tuesday called on President Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, her office said.

The meeting came a day after Vice President Dhankhar tendered his resignation to Murmu.

The Rashtrapati Bhavan also shared a picture of the meeting on X. “Shri Harivansh, Deputy Chairman, Rajya Sabha, called on President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan,” it said.

with agency inputs