India
VP partisan, says INDIA bloc; BJP unfazedly backs Dhankhar – Times of India
At a press conference on Wednesday INDIA block from opposition parties, where the allies were present, Kharge said: “Over the past three years, his behavior is contrary to the dignity of the high office he holds. Sometimes he starts praising the government and sometimes he starts himself Eklavya by RSS.”
In RS, Dhankhar told Opposition MPs that he was aware of the report against him. BJP and its allies rallied behind him and sought an apology from Kharge for “insulting” a “son of the soil”.
Oppn steps up attack on Dhankhar, saying he is RS’ biggest disruptor
NEW DELHI: Claiming that “the biggest disruptor of Rajya Sabha was its own chairman”, the INDIA bloc on Wednesday stepped up its attack on Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, saying his “biased and partisan behaviour” had forced the opposition alliance to table a resolution to file seeking his removal.
Members of the anti-BJP bloc led by the LoP in Rajya Sabha and Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge alleged that Chairman Dhankhar was ‘strangling the voice of the opposition’ and acted as ‘the spokesperson and shield of the government’ in view of his ‘next promotion’. .
“This is not only a violation of protocol but a betrayal of the Constitution and the people of India,” Kharge told reporters at a press conference, while clarifying that the announcement for Dhankhar’s removal was not about personal grievances or political fights. Opposition parties submitted the notification to the Rajya Sabha Secretary General on Tuesday.
Members of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Trinamool Congress, Samajwadi Party, Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP (Sharad Pawar), Jharkhand Mukti Morcha and CPI (M) were among those who attended the press conference. No member of AAP, a key part of the alliance, was present, but Jairam Ramesh of Congress said AAP was a big part of this meeting, and five AAP leaders had signed the announcement. AAP members had to skip the press conference as they had an appointment with the Election Commission.
“We are saddened that 75 years after the adoption of the Constitution, the Speaker’s biased and partisan behavior has forced the Opposition to table this resolution against him,” Kharge said. He claimed that those who previously held the post were unbiased and not involved in politics.
He said, “For the past three years, his behavior is against the dignity of the high office he holds. Sometimes he starts praising the government and sometimes he starts calling himself the Eklavya of RSS.”
“His commitment is not to the Constitution and constitutional traditions, but to the ruling party. He works as a spokesperson for the government,” Kharge said. He then called Dhankhar the “biggest reason” for disruptions in the House of Representatives.
“Normally, the opposition seeks protection from the chairman because they see the person in office as their protector. But if the chairman himself starts praising the prime minister and the ruling party in that situation, who will listen to the opposition?” Charge asked.
He alleged that Dhankhar resorts to training senior leaders and speaks to them like a school principal. The chairman has never “missed an opportunity to insult opposition leaders,” Kharge said.
Recalling Monday’s incidents in the House of Representatives targeting Dhankhar, he said it was “particularly disturbing as it was characterized by blatant bias and a complete lack of fairness”. “The chairman is openly encouraging and provoking the treasury benches to make outrageous comments against the opposition,” Kharge said.
On the BJP claiming that the opposition parties do not have the numbers to get the resolution passed, Kharge said, “Let them first allow the notification and concede, then we will collect the numbers too.”
DMK’s Tiruchi Siva, RJD’s Manoj Jha, TMC’s Nadimul Haque, SP’s Javed Ali Khan and Shiv Sena’s (UBT) Sanjay Raut also hit out at Dhankhar and supported the charge against him, saying it was about “the recovery of the core principles of democracy”. .
