Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Tuesday remarked that individuals such as him, who hold constitutional posts, are not in a position to settle scores.
The vice president’s comment, while addressing women journalists from the Women Journalists Welfare Trust, came against the backdrop of the Opposition moving a no-confidence motion against him on December 10. The motion was dismissed by the Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairperson Harivansh on December 19.
Dhankhar, on account of being the vice president, is also the chairman of the Upper House of Parliament.
The vice president said on Tuesday that the media was operating in a challenging environment that includes “disruptive technologies” and situations in which “narratives are given wings only to generate sensation”.
Quite often, Dhankhar said, narratives are “fuelled in an orchestrated manner by forces that are determined to be inimical to the interest of this country”.
Dhankhar cited as an example the manner in which the no-confidence motion against him.
“Look at the [no-confidence] notice against the vice president…just look at the six links they have given,” he said. “You will be shocked.”
“[Late former Prime Minister] Chandrashekhar ji had said that a kitchen knife should never be used for bypass surgery, but those who moved the notice against me didn’t even have a proper kitchen knife, the knife was rusted,” he said, referring to the examples the Opposition had cited to illustrate their grievances about Dhankhar.
“Any constitutional position has to be vindicated by commitment to sublimity, sterling qualities and constitutionalism,” he said. “We are not in a position to settle scores.”
Opposition MPs had submitted the notice seeking the removal of Dhankhar, accusing him of conducting the proceedings of the Upper House in an “extremely partisan manner”.
The Opposition had moved the motion after days of uproar in the Rajya Sabha, with members of the ruling National Democratic Alliance accusing the Congress leadership of colluding with billionaire philanthropist George Soros to “destabilise” India.
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