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Congress, Dhankhar continue to spar over Sonia’s remarks on judiciary
Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar said he would have failed in his constitutional duty had he not reacted to Congress leader Sonia Gandhi’s remarks in Rajya Sabha on Wednesday, when the latter said there a bid to “delegitimise the judiciary”, without explicitly naming Dhankhar.
Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar said he would have failed in his constitutional duty had he not reacted to Congress leader Sonia Gandhi’s remarks in Rajya Sabha on Wednesday, when the latter said there a bid to “delegitimise the judiciary”, without explicitly naming Dhankhar.
Dhankhar hit out at the comments a day later, calling it “severely inappropriate” and showing a “lack of faith in democracy.
The Congress protested against the Rajya Sabha chairman during Parliament proceedings on Friday and even staged a walkout, seeking his remarks against Gandhi be expunged from the records.
A Congress leader later said Gandhi’s utterances “reflected a lack of faith not in democracy, but in those who claim to be its champions today”.
At the Congress parliamentary party meeting on Wednesday, UPA chairperson Gandhi was reported to have said that a “troubling new development is the calculated attempt under way to delegitimise the judiciary”.
“Ministers – and even a high constitutional authority – have been enlisted to making speeches attacking the judiciary on various grounds. It is quite clear that this is not an effort to provide reasonable suggestions for improvement. Rather, it is an effort to reduce the standing of the judiciary in the eyes of the public,” the former Congress president said.
Her comments were made in the backdrop of the escalating tension between the government and the judiciary over several issues, including the appointment of judges to constitutional courts.
On Thursday, Dhankhar said Gandhi’s remarks were “severely inappropriate” and showed “lack of faith in democracy”.
In the Upper House on Friday, the standoff between the two sides continued as the Congress demanded that Dhankhar’s remarks be expunged.
“If a Lok Sabha Member (Sonia Gandhi) talks outside, it should not be discussed in Rajya Sabha. If the Chair comments, it is unfortunate. This has never happened,” Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge said.
“If I make a political statement, can the chairman or anybody take cognisance of it? Therefore, there are several rulings… they are against this procedure. Therefore, whatever is said here should be removed, should be withdrawn and I humbly request you, to kindly expunge it and it is not good in the interest of democracy and this will become a precedent,” he added.
Dhankhar, however, stood his ground and said had he not reacted, it would have “demeaning consequences” and an impression sought to be imparted that this Chair would become a party to a “pernicious and sinister design” at the instance of the government to delegitimise judiciary.
“The observations were to that extreme degree as chairman (of) Rajya Sabha and vice-president can be enlisted by the ruling party to delegitimise the judiciary. If I were to show an escapist route to such a statement, I will be creating a history that will shame me and shame this House,” he said.
The opposition, barring a few parties like the TRS, CPI(M) and DMK, staged a walkout.
Later in the day, the Congress asked Dhankhar not to “cloak this debate in the guise of concern for parliamentary sovereignty.”
In his letter to the vice-president, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh alleged that no earlier government has interfered as excessively and thoroughly in the functioning of the judiciary and delayed important judicial appointments on multiple occasions as the incumbent led by the BJP.
He said the principle of checks and balances under the Constitution is not being adhered to by the government “that has resulted in the current state of unease.”
