Tuesday, 22 July 2025
Tuesday, 22 July 2025
The buzz that Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar’s shock resignation has more to do than the ill health he cited got stronger on Tuesday as news broke that he will not be giving a farewell speech and with Prime Minister Narendra Modi posting a rather cryptic message.
It was also reported that President Droupadi Murmu has accepted Dhankhar’s resignation
“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,” the prime minister posted on Tuesday morning.
The Telegraph Online had reported in April this year how the absence of Vice President Dhankhar from the tarmac of Palam airport as US Vice President J.D. Vance touched down in India and Dhankhar not hosting the state dinner in his counterpart’s honour had fuelled speculation in Delhi that the Vice President had had a fallout with the powers that be.
Dhankhar resigned from his post on Monday evening citing medical reasons.
“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,” he wrote in his letter to President Murmu.
The 74-year-old Bengal ex-governor had more than two years remaining in his term. His decision comes months after undergoing angioplasty at AIIMS, Delhi, and follows recent public appearances where he occasionally appeared unwell.
The Rajya Sabha was informed about the home ministry's notification (dated July 22) regarding resignation of VP Jagdeep Dhankhar with immediate effect on Tuesday.
In his resignation letter, Dhankhar expressed gratitude to President Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Council of Ministers and all Members of Parliament.
‘Shocking and inexplicable’: Congress
Dhankhar’s resignation drew immediate reaction from the Opposition, with the Congress calling it “totally unexpected.”
“The sudden resignation of the Vice President and Chairman of the Rajya Sabha is as shocking as it is inexplicable,” Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh posted on X.
Ramesh pointed out that Dhankhar had scheduled a Business Advisory Committee (BAC) meeting for Tuesday at 1 p.m. and was also expected to make important announcements related to the judiciary. He urged the Prime Minister to convince Dhankhar to reconsider, calling it a matter of national interest.
Dhankhar was also slated to interact with the newly elected committee of CREDAI Rajasthan in Jaipur on July 23.
BAC no-show deepens controversy
Opposition leaders linked Dhankhar’s abrupt resignation to a larger discord within the Rajya Sabha’s functioning on Monday. The BAC met twice that day, first at 12:30 p.m., and then at 4:30 p.m. While the first meeting was attended by key ministers including JP Nadda and Kiren Rijiju, both were absent during the second session. In their absence, Union Minister L Murugan represented the government and requested the meeting be rescheduled.
According to BAC member Jairam Ramesh, the committee waited for Nadda and Rijiju, but the two ministers did not show up. “Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar was not personally informed that the two senior Ministers were not attending,” Ramesh said. “Rightly he took umbrage and rescheduled the BAC for today at 1 pm.”
Ramesh added, “Something very serious happened yesterday between 1 pm and 4:30 pm to account for the deliberate absence of Nadda and Rijiju.”
The Rajya Sabha deputy chairman can now preside over House proceedings until a new vice president is elected.
BJP: ‘Due to important work’
J.P. Nadda issued a clarification on Tuesday, stating that both he and parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju were engaged with critical parliamentary responsibilities during the second BAC meeting.
“Kiren Rijiju and I did not attend the meeting called by the Vice President at 4:30 PM because we were occupied with other important parliamentary work, and prior intimation was given to the office of the Honourable Vice President,” Nadda said.
Just hours before resigning, Dhankhar had taken note of an Opposition-sponsored notice for a motion to remove Justice Yashwant Varma and directed the secretary general to proceed with necessary steps.
Questions in political circles
CPI MP P Sandosh Kumar said the resignation was "quite unexpected", adding, "We don't know what the reasons are...only two persons Narendra Modi and Amit Shah can explain this... one thing is sure that he has not resigned due to health reasons," he told PTI.
Shiv Sena (UBT) spokesperson Anand Dubey said Dhankhar stepping down on the first day of the Monsoon session “raises eyebrows.”
Kapil Sibal, former Union Minister and Rajya Sabha MP, called for acceptance of the resignation and to “move on,” but referred to Dhankhar as a patriot.
Samajwadi Party MP Awadhesh Prasad said he was shocked at the vice president's resignation. "Suddenly in the night we learnt that the vice president has resigned due to health reasons. He was in the House yesterday," he said.
The opposition RJD in Bihar on Tuesday claimed that the resignation of Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar was a conspiracy hatched by the BJP, aimed at "shunting" Chief Minister Nitish Kumar ahead of the assembly polls.
However, the claim was summarily dismissed by state minister Shravan Kumar, a close aide of the state's longest-serving CM who has been declared as the "face of the NDA" for the upcoming elections.
With Dhankhar’s exit, the vice presidential post stands vacant, and by constitutional requirement, an election must be held soon.
