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Sources say during Monday’s BAC meeting, Dhankhar reportedly adopted a confrontational tone, particularly with members of the ruling party, including ministers.
Former Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar.(PTI File Image)
Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar’s resignation has sparked a political turmoil. Questions continue to be raised as to what went wrong on Monday, July 21, leading to Dhankhar’s exit. Sources say at least three to four days before Parliament session was set to begin, Dhankhar was informed by the government of its plan to introduce a motion for the removal of Justice Yashwant Varma, ideally first in the Lok Sabha. Even a day before the session commenced, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju personally reiterated this to the Vice President. At that point, Dhankhar did not mention anything about a counter-motion from the Opposition.
On the opening day of the session, sources say the Vice President maintained complete silence on the subject. However, during the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) meeting at 12:30 PM, his demeanor shifted significantly. He reportedly adopted a confrontational tone, particularly with members of the ruling party, including ministers.
By mid-afternoon, it became apparent to the government that Dhankhar had taken on record a motion submitted by Opposition parties, complete with their signatures – a move he himself referenced. In response, Rajya Sabha Leader of the House JP Nadda and Minister Kiren Rijiju immediately approached Dhankhar, urging him not to proceed with such a motion in the absence of ruling party signatures. Their appeal was met with aggressive resistance.
A second attempt was made, this time with Rijiju and Minister Arjun Meghwal reiterating the same request. They even offered to consult the top leadership on how to manage the procedural aspects. Dhankhar, however, remained dismissive and combative. A third outreach effort followed, with Meghwal returning on behalf of the government to stress that the motion was in the national interest and that there was broad consensus across party lines in the fight against judicial corruption. The Vice President, however, rebuffed the overture sharply. Reportedly, he responded by asserting that he didn’t need lessons on constitutional powers, and that he was fully aware of the authority vested in the Vice President’s office.
In the aftermath, the government convened a series of internal meetings with senior ministers. They began collecting signatures from NDA Rajya Sabha members for their own motion seeking the removal of Justice Varma. By around 6:00 to 6:30 PM that evening, the bulk of NDA MPs had signed the motion.
Then, without any communication from the government, Jagdeep Dhankhar unexpectedly arrived at Rashtrapati Bhavan at around 8:30 PM, unannounced. After waiting for nearly 40 minutes, he submitted his resignation to the President of India. He subsequently shared the news on his social media platforms.
Interestingly, it is learned that the government first learned about his resignation not through official channels, but from his social media post.
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