INDIA bloc MPs submit motion to remove Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar

An Opposition leader said the motion was moved not as a mark of protest against an individual, but to protect the institution and the chair

NEW DELHI: Members of the Opposition’s INDIA bloc on Tuesday submitted a notice for a motion to remove Vice President and Rajya Sabha chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar.

The Opposition bloc on Tuesday moved a no-confidence motion against Rajya Sabha chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar. (PTI12_10_2024_000060B) (PTI)

“ALL parties belonging to the INDIA group have had no option but to formally submit a no-confidence motion against the learned Hon’ble Chairman of the Rajya Sabha for the extremely partisan manner in which he has been conducting the proceedings of the Council of States,” Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X.

The motion has just been submitted to the Secretary General of the Rajya Sabha, he added.

The vice president is the ex-officio chairman of Rajya Sabha.

According to Article 67 (b) of the Constitution, a Vice-President may be removed from his office by a resolution passed by the Rajya Sabha and agreed to by the Lok Sabha. The provision also requires MPs to give a 14-day notice declaring their intention to move the resolution against the chair.

The move is unlikely to succeed because the INDIA bloc does not have a majority in either House.

An Opposition leader outside Parliament said the motion was moved not as a mark of protest against an individual, but to protect the institution and the chair.

“We are trying to send a message that the Opposition has concerns that are not against any individual but to seek the protection of the institution,” said the leader not wishing to be named.

The leader said the chair’s decision to not allow the Opposition to raise issues has been “a matter of concern”.

The leader said floor leaders of several parties have signed the motion. These include Nadimul Haque and Sagarika Ghosh from the Trinamool Congress; Sanjay Singh of the Aam Aadmi Party; Priyanka Chaturvedi of the Shiva Sena (UBT).

The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has not signed the motion. BJD chief Naveen Patnaik told reporters in Odisha that his party, which has seven MPs in the Rajya Sabha, has not decided on the INDIA bloc’s motion against Dhankhar.

“We are examining it. We will take whatever step is necessary,” Patnaik said. The BJD supported Dhankar’s candidature as Vice President in 2022.