Centre reached out to VP hours before he quit
At least two senior central ministers reached out to former vice president Jagdeep Dhankhar after the government found out that he had acknowledged an Opposition-sponsored notice for the impeachment of justice Yashwant Varma and one of them hinted at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's disapproval of the move, but the 74-year-old said he was acting within the rules of the House, people aware of the matter said on Wednesday.
Union health minister and leader of the Rajya Sabha JP Nadda and Union parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju spoke to Dhankhar on Monday after he spoke in the Rajya Sabha about an impeachment notice against the sitting high court judge signed by 63 members.
'Rijiu told Dhankhar that in the Lok Sabha, there is a process of building a consensus on the impeachment and pointed out that the leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, had signed the notice. He even indicated that the PM is not happy about the sudden development,' said one of the persons quoted above, requesting anonymity.
But Dhankhar indicated that he was acting well within the rules of the House, this person cited above added. It is only after this exchange -- which came after the first business advisory committee of the Rajya Sabha at 12:30pm -- that the leaders chose to not go for the second BAC meeting that was held at 4.30pm on Monday.
HT reported on Tuesday that the former Vice President's move to kickstart the impeachment process of justice Varma in the Rajya Sabha took the government, which wanted the process to go through the Lok Sabha, by surprise, and it was the trigger that prompted the abrupt resignation.
The developments emerged on a day the Election Commission of India (ECI) announced that it had already kicked off preparations to hold the next vice-presidential elections as politics heated up over a series of meetings in Delhi following the dramatic resignation two days ago.
Union home minister Amit Shah, Union health minister and Leader of the Rajya Sabha JP Nadda, and Parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla amid intense speculation on whether the former VP admitted the Opposition-sponsored notice for the impeachment of justice Varma in the Rajya Sabha.
Rajya Sabha deputy chairman Harivansh also met Birla for a marathon meeting. According to two senior officials, the pending impeachment notices were one of the key topics of discussion. Government officials indicated that the government didn't want to sit on the issue and may urge the presiding officials to start the impeachment process by appointing a committee of jurists, who will look into the allegations and give a report to Parliament.
'The government is in no mood to take up the Opposition-sponsored notice,' said a senior government functionary, adding that the Centre would prefer the Lok Sabha notice to proceed.
Separately, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge told HT that constituents of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) will meet and collectively decide the strategy for the upcoming VP election, and take a call on any candidate.
On Monday night, Dhankhar, 74, resigned on health grounds, in an unprecedented and unexpected move that came after he presided over the first day of the monsoon session in the Rajya Sabha.
In his resignation letter to President Droupadi Murmu, Dhankhar said, 'To prioritise health care and abide by medical advice, I hereby resign as Vice President of India, effective immediately, in accordance with Article 67(a) of the Constitution.'
The Union home ministry formalised the decision through a gazette notification, that came on the same day as Prime Minister Narendra Modi's terse message, 15 hours and 18 minutes after the resignation was posted at 9.25pm by the Vice President's X handle
The poll watchdog said it has started constituting the electoral college comprising MPs of both Houses of Parliament. Both elected and nominated members are eligible to vote in the vice presidential election. It is also finalising the returning officer and assistant returning officers.
'On completion of the preparatory activities, the announcement of the election schedule to the office of the Vice President of India will follow as soon as possible,' ECI said.
In the 782-member electoral college, comprising parliamentarians from both houses, the National Democratic Alliance holds the edge with 426 members. The INDIA bloc has 312 members.
ECI said the formal 'announcement of the election schedule to the office of the Vice-President of India will follow as soon as possible' once the foundational steps are complete.
According to Clause 2 of Article 68 of the Constitution, an election to fill a vacancy in the office of the vice president occurring due to his death, resignation or removal, or otherwise, will be held 'as soon as possible' after it goes vacant.
The person elected to fill the vacancy will be entitled to hold office 'for the full term of five years from the date on which he enters upon his office'.
From the day the notification is issued, 'calling the electoral college to vote', and till the day of the poll, a period of 30 days is stipulated.
A person cannot be elected as the vice president unless he is a citizen of India, has completed 35 years of age and is qualified for election as a member of the Rajya Sabha.
The entire debate on the impeachment motion – justice Varma is facing allegations of corruption after wads of cash were recovered from his residence in Delhi in March – now hinges on whether Dhankhar admitted the notice signed by 63 Opposition members on Monday.
HT reported on Tuesday that last week, Dhankhar asked some Opposition leaders to give a notice for the impeachment of justice Varma in the Rajya Sabha, even as the government wanted to bring the notice only in the Lok Sabha.
Accordingly, a senior Congress lawmaker who is also a lawyer, hurriedly prepared an impeachment notice on Sunday; all 63 MPs who signed it on Monday were from the Opposition parties. Not a single National Democratic Alliance (NDA) MP signed the Opposition-sponsored notice in the Rajya Sabha. The reason: The NDA had no idea that such a notice was being prepared.
Dhankhar himself came to the House after the first Business Advisory Committee meeting on Monday and announced, 'I need to inform you that I have received notice of motion under Article 217(1)(B) read with Article 218 and Article 124…to constitute a statutory committee for removal of justice Yashwant Varma. This has been received by me today. It is signed by more than 50 members of the Council of States.'
The notice derailed the government's meticulous plan to remove justice Varma. A furious Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) decided that party chief and Leader of the Rajya Sabha JP Nadda and parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju would not attend the second BAC meeting led by Dhankhar in the evening. Hours later, Dhankhar had resigned.
(With inputs by Vrinda Tulsian)
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