Jagdeep Dhankhar forced out by government as he decided to go by book: Mallikarjun Kharge

NEW DELHI: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday claimed that former vice-president Jagdeep Dhankhar was forced out by the Modi govt because after years of "harassing" the opposition, he suddenly decided to move by the book.

The decision to admit the notice to remove Justice Shekhar Yadav, along with the one against Justice Yashwant Varma, riled the govt, and PM Narendra Modi gave Dhankhar the option of either withdrawing his order or face action, Kharge alleged. He said Dhankhar opted to resign.

Speaking at Congress's annual legal conclave, Kharge recounted the "harassment" of the opposition at the hands of Dhankhar. He mentioned that Dhankhar had suspended a record number of MPs from Rajya Sabha, while Congress MP Rajni Patil was suspended for seven months, lamenting "this is their democracy".

But then, he said, Dhankhar one day woke up to his constitutional role because he realised that his tenure would be remembered in history if he worked as per rules, rubbing the PM and BJP the wrong way.

The Congress brass, including Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, attended the conclave themed "Constitutional Challenges: Perspectives & Pathways". A message from Congress parliamentary party chairperson Sonia Gandhi was read out by senior leader Salman Khurshid.

"Today, the Constitution is under siege. BJP-RSS, which never fought for freedom or upheld equality, now uses its power to dismantle the very framework it long opposed," Sonia Gandhi said. "Now, they seek to erase socialism and secularism, pillars of Ambedkar's vision of equal citizenship. This is not reform but an ideological coup replacing our democratic republic with a theocratic corporate state serving the powerful few," she added. "We will oppose every attempt to undermine the Constitution, in Parliament, in courts, and on the streets. Our mission is clear - to reclaim the republic and protect the rights of each and every person," Sonia Gandhi said.

Kharge alleged that when Dhankhar started asserting that he was independent and allowed a notice for the opposition's motion to remove Varma, he was "threatened and pressured" by the govt.

This is the first time that the Congress brass linked Dhankhar's resignation, which it called sacking, to govt pressure on constitutional offices. Earlier, whenever Kharge was asked about the reason for Dhankhar's resignation he would respond saying he had no information and it was for Dhankhar to tell what happened since it was a matter between him and Prime Minister Modi.

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