Congress MP Jairam Ramesh on Resignation of Vice President: Far Deeper Reasons
"...The Speaker was very enthusiastic in running the House..."
Congress MP Jairam Ramesh on Resignation of Vice President: Far Deeper Reasons
Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar resignation Latest News: Congress MP Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday stated that there are “far deeper reasons” behind the “truly unprecedented” resignation of the Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, citing the “deliberate absence” of the Leader of the House JP Nadda and the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Kiren Rijiju from the Business Advisory Committee chaired by the Vice President yesterday.
“Yesterday, Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar chaired the Business Advisory Committee of the Rajya Sabha at 12:30 PM. It was attended by most members, including Leader of the House JP Nadda and the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Kiren Rijiju. After some discussion, the BAC decided to meet again at 4:30 PM,” Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X.
He went on to explain, “At 4:30 PM, the BAC reassembled under the chairmanship of Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar. It waited for Shri Nadda and Shri Rijiju to arrive. They never came. Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar was not personally informed that the two senior Ministers were not attending. Rightly he took umbrage and rescheduled the BAC for today at 1 PM.”
He further stated that “something very serious happened yesterday between 1 PM and 4:30 PM to account for the deliberate absence of Shri Nadda and Shri Rijiju from the second BAC yesterday.”
Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar’s resignation came late in the evening yesterday. He cited “to prioritize health care and abide by medical advice” as the reason for the resignation, which he said would be “effective immediately”.
Jairam Ramesh, in the post on X, called the move a “truly unprecedented ” and further stated, “He has given health reasons for doing so. Those should be respected. But it is also a fact that there are far deeper reasons for his resignation. While always lauding post-2014 India, he spoke fearlessly for the welfare of farmers, forcefully against what he called 'ahankar' in public life, and strongly on judicial accountability and restraint. To the extent possible under the current G2 ruling regime, he tried to accommodate the Opposition. He was a stickler for norms, proprieties, and protocol, which he believed were being consistently disregarded in both his capacities.”
“Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar's resignation speaks highly of him. It also speaks poorly of those who had got him elected as Vice President in the first instance,” he remarked.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi told ANI that “Despite” the health condition of the Vice President, he “used to conduct parliamentary proceeding…This is the first time a Vice President has resigned in such a shocking manner and hope we get to know more... There should be no disruption in the proceedings of the House and in his work as a Vice President and a Chairman...”
Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi, calling the resignation unfortunate, stated, “…from our side, we wish him good health, but somewhere it seems that the relationship between the Central Government and the Vice President is not the same as before. Because even the Union Minister was not present in yesterday's BAC meeting. So far, there has been no statement from Prime Minister Modi... We also seek clarification from the Central Government whether they had prior information that the Vice President was going to resign due to his health, and if they did not have the information, then why this kind of confusion? We want to know this."
RJD leader Mrityunjay Tiwari told ANI, "...it appears that he has given this resignation under some pressure. He must have been hurt in some way by the BJP challenging his privileges in Parliament. There must be some reason why he resigned; health reasons seem to be an excuse, but in reality, it seems that he is hurt by this government."
Congress MP Sukhdeo Bhagat said, "If it was on health grounds, I think he could have done it even before the session. Yesterday he suddenly resigned, it was unexpected. Yesterday, Union Minister JP Nadda said whatever I say will go on record, so will you dictate to the Vice President? Secondly, there was a meeting of the Business Advisory Committee yesterday. The Parliamentary Affairs Minister disappears. JP Nadda ji disappears. That's why I said the script was written earlier..."
MP P. Sandosh Kumar said, "I don't think it is because of his ill health, and only the BJP can tell what happened last night. The Speaker was very enthusiastic in running the House..."
Meanwhile, BJP MLA Ram Kadam told ANI that the resignation “is likely the first instance in history where a person has submitted their resignation on their own, despite holding such a high position. The lesson that a hardworking worker like me learns from this is that any post is for the system, and if we are unable to do justice to that system due to health or any other reason, then it is appropriate to leave that post..."
Another BJP MP Dr Bhagwat Kishanrao Karad stated, "...Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar was also admitted to AIIMS some days ago...He resigned due to health reasons"
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not issued any statement on the resignation of the Vice President, nor has President Droupadi Murmu.
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi is also yet to make a comment.
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