The Jagdeep Dhankhar-Government Rift: Exclusive Details On Shock Exit

Before Jagdeep Dhankhar announced his shock resignation as Vice President on Monday, citing health reasons, several moves on the political chessboard, behind the scenes, may have played a key role in the decision.

NDTV had reported earlier on Tuesday that Mr Dhankhar's call to accept a motion by opposition MPs on the removal of High Court Justice Yashwant Varma - at whose house bundles of cash were allegedly found - did not sit well with the Union government, which wanted to take a lead on the issue. The Centre had readied a motion for Justice Varma's removal, taken signatures from opposition MPs as well and wanted to introduce it in the Lok Sabha.

The government was caught completely by surprise, however, when Mr Dhankhar, as the chairman of the Rajya Sabha, accepted the opposition MPs' motion without even informing it. This set in motion a chain of events, details of which have been accessed by NDTV, which eventually led to Mr Dhankhar resigning as Vice President in a matter of hours.

The turn of events has also led to an intriguing situation where Mr Dhankhar, against whom the opposition had moved a no-confidence motion just six months ago, is now getting support from some opposition parties while the government has briefed its own MPs about times he had "crossed the limit".

Fast-Paced Developments

Sources said Mr Dhankhar not only accepted the opposition MPs' proposal against Justice Verma but kept the government in the dark about it. "If the government had been informed, MPs from the ruling party would have also signed the motion," said a source. The decision, the source stressed, also went against the government's plan to introduce the motion in the Lok Sabha, about which opposition MPs had also been taken on board.

The government, said the sources, was upset because it had taken a strong stand on corruption in the judiciary and Mr Dhankhar's move risked diluting its leadership on the issue.

After the Vice President accepted the opposition's motion, a meeting of senior ministers was held with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The ministers, the sources said, then sat together in the office of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh - one of the seniormost members of the Cabinet - and asked the chief whip of the BJP to call all Rajya Sabha MPs of the ruling party there.

BJP MPs, in groups of 10, were called and asked to sign a significant motion that had been kept ready. After these groups left, signatures of MPs of other members of the BJP-led NDA were also sought.

All the MPs were asked to remain tight-lipped about the motion and, importantly, they were asked to stay in Delhi for the next four days, ensuring their availability in case action would need to be taken on it.

Vice President Dhankhar was then informed about this motion and the fact that MPs had already signed it.

Damage Control

Later on Tuesday, MPs were also called in groups by senior ministers and briefed about the times Mr Dhankhar - who was the governor of West Bengal before being elected Vice President in 2022 - had "crossed the line", the sources said. The MPs were also told about occasions when he had criticised the government or it had to face embarrassment because of him.

Before anything more could be done, however, Mr Dhankhar announced that he was resigning.

Health Reasons

At 9.25 pm on Tuesday, Mr Dhankhar's resignation letter was posted by the X account of the Vice President. Mr Dhankhar still had two years left in his term, and the announcement took many by surprise. 

In the letter to the President, Mr Dhankhar said he was stepping down from his post to "prioritise health care and abide by medical advice", 

"I express my deep gratitude to the Honourable Prime Minister and the esteemed Council of Ministers. Prime Minister's cooperation and support have been invaluable, and I have learned much during my time in office," he wrote, adding that he was honoured to have served in a "transformative era" of India's history.

Reactions

The resignation has been accepted by President Droupadi Murmu and while not many in the government have reacted so far, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday that he wished Mr Dhankhar good health. 

"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 wrote on X. 

The Congress said the government should have been more "gracious" about the resignation and asked for more transparency on the reasons behind it.

"It's very unexpected. It shouldn't have happened the way it has happened. There is an issue because Mr Dhankhar is healthy. He was in a jovial mood. However, something happened in the afternoon. Ministers didn't appear for his meeting. He might have felt insulted," Congress Rajya Sabha MP Vivek Tankha was quoted as saying by news agency PTI. 

Senior Congress leader KC Venugopal also said the government has to clarify why the Vice President resigned.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, with whom Mr Dhankhar had frequent run-ins during his time as governor and who is seen as one of his staunchest critics, said that while she does not want to comment too much, the former Vice President was in good health.