Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar.
Credit: PTI File Photo
New Delhi: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday said his party has nothing to do with whether Jagdeep Dhankhar continues as Vice President or not even as some of his party leaders appeared to question the circumstances under which he had to resign.
While almost the entire BJP kept a studied silence over Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi came up with a cryptic post on 'X' saying he got "many opportunities" to serve the country in various capacities.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said she believed that Dhankhar’s health condition is "absolutely fine" but felt that there could be more to the development than what meets the eye.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said, "our popular vice president resigned citing health concerns, but none of the BJP leaders visited him to enquire about his health...Daal me kuch kala hai (There is something wrong)."
Congress General Secretary (Communications) Jairam Ramesh said "PM's non-post on X regarding Jagdeep Dhankar'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."
One of Ramesh's post praising Dhankhar for taking on both government and opposition alike attracted a rebuttal from Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi who said, "Fact check: Incorrect. Reminder: Opposition was forced to file a no confidence motion against the chair because of the partisan manner of conduct. Let’s at least not forget that, just because the moment has come as a surprise."
Senior Congress MP Vivek Tankha said the office of Vice President is the second highest seat of authority in India and "to create conditions compelling his exit is an embarrassment for our polity".
However, Kharge told reporters, "whether Dhankhar goes or not is not our concern. It is up to the government to accept or not." Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal said the government has to clarify why the vice president resigned.
RJD claimed that Dhankhar's resignation was to pave way for Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to assume the office of Vice President. JD(U) denied any such move.