Amit Shah scotches rumours about Jagdeep Dhankhar being under ‘house arrest’

As the Opposition parties continue speculating about the reason behind the resignation of former vice president Jagdeep Dhankhar and his abrupt disappearance, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday (August 25) said Dhankhar had resigned due to health issues, and dismissed the opposition’s claims that he was under house arrest.

“Dhankhar sahab’s resignation letter is clear in itself. He has cited health reasons for his resignation. He has also expressed heartfelt gratitude towards the Prime Minister and other ministers and government members for his good tenure,” Amit Shah told ANI in an interview.

‘Don’t make a fuss’: Amit Shah

On being told that some opposition leaders were claiming that Dhankhar was under house arrest, the home minister said we “shouldn’t make a fuss out of all this”.

“It seems like your interpretation of truth and lies is based on what the opposition has to say. We shouldn’t make a fuss out of all this. Dhankhar held a constitutional post and discharged his duties as per the constitution. He resigned due to personal health reasons. One should not deliberate much on the issue,” said the home minister.

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Amit Shah said the matter should be put to rest, and “one should not try to stretch too much and find something”.

‘Silenced by govt’: Opposition

Several leaders of the opposition have questioned the sudden resignation of Dhankhar as vice president, and have claimed that he was “silenced” by the government.

Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said it is the first time in the history of the country that a vice president’s resignation was accompanied by “silencing”.

Also Read: Jairam Ramesh questions former VP Jagdeep Dhankhar's 'disappearance'

Rajya Sabha MP and senior Supreme Court lawyer Kapil Sibal has wondered whether a habeas corpus petition should be filed, given the fact that Dhankhar has not been seen in public from the time he resigned his post.

‘Where is the old vice president gone?’: Rahul

Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi has also questioned Dhankhar’s whereabouts, and accused the BJP of taking the country back to “medieval times”.

“We are going back to medieval times when the king could just remove anybody at will. There’s no concept of what an elected person is. He doesn’t like your face, so he tells ED to put a case, and then a democratically-elected person is wiped out within 30 days (referring to the Constitution 130^th Amendment Bill that has been introduced in Parliament)," Rahul Gandhi told a press conference on August 20.

Also Read: Not giving Dhankhar a farewell a sorry reflection on India’s public culture

"Also, let’s not forget why we are electing a new Vice President. Just yesterday, I was having a conversation with somebody, and I said, you know, where is the old vice president gone? He’s gone,” continued Rahul.

VP election on Sept 9

Catching everyone unawares, Jagdeep Dhankhar resigned as vice president citing health concerns, two years before the end of his five-year tenure.

The election to choose his successor as Vice President is to be conducted on September 9.

Also Read: EC issues notification for Vice President election to be held on Sept 9

The two candidates in contention are the NDA’s CP Radhakrishnan, presently Governor of Maharashtra, and the Opposition’s candidate Justice (Retd) B Sudershan Reddy.