Rajya Sabha MP and senior advocate Kapil Sibal on Saturday raised concern over the whereabouts of former Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar as he has reportedly remained unreachable since his abrupt resignation last month.
“On July 21, Dhankhar tendered his resignation. Today is August 9, and we have no information about his whereabouts. I had previously heard about the ‘Laapataa Ladies’ (2023 Hindi film), but this is the first time I have heard about the ‘Laapataa (missing) Vice President’”, Sibal told reporters at a press briefing.
Dhankhar abruptly resigned as Vice President on July 21, citing health grounds. Opposition leaders, however, questioned the reason, saying he was “forced out” by the NDA government.
Sibal, on Saturday, mulled filing a habeas corpus over Dhankhar’s reported absence his resignation. “Ever since he became the VP, he had protected the government. Now, it seems that the Opposition will have to protect him… What do we do? Should we have to file a habeas corpus or something else?” he said.
The lawmaker recounted how he had earlier tried to call Dhankhar, but the call was picked up by the former V-P’s assistant, who said, “He is resting.”
{{/usCountry}}The lawmaker recounted how he had earlier tried to call Dhankhar, but the call was picked up by the former V-P’s assistant, who said, “He is resting.”
{{/usCountry}}“After this, no one is answering the phone. Many political leaders also said the same,” Sibal added.
The senior advocate urged Union home minister Amit Shah to address the matter. “We heard incidents from different countries, where people reportedly went missing. But it is a democratic country, the people must know about Dhankhar’s whereabouts,” he said.“This is the former V-P we are talking about; you must know his whereabouts. Kindly tell us whether he is doing well. If we know where he is staying, we could reach out to him before the next Vice Presidential elections and wish him well.”
The VP election is scheduled to take place on September 9.