New Delhi:

Two days after Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar said he was pained when Leader of the Opposition and Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge entered the well of the House to protest, the two leaders shared several light moments this morning.

As he rose to speak during the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s address, Mr Kharge said he won’t be able to stand for long due to knee pain. The Chairman promptly responded, “You may address (the House) while sitting.” When the 81-year-old Congress chief said that he will sit only if the Chairman permits him to, Mr Dhankhar said, “We have to ensure that you are comfortable while addressing the House. So if the physical disability or pain is of that extent that here and outside you are unable to stand, then you may take your own call.”

Mr Kharge added with a smile that a speech while seated is not as impassioned as one delivered standing. The Chairman agreed with a ‘jazba’ remark as both leaders smiled. Mr Dhankhar then added in a light vein, ‘I have helped you in this case’. To this, Mr Kharge replied, ‘Sometimes you help us, and we remember too’. This evoked a laugh from the Chairman.

There was more to come. As Mr Kharge thanked the Chairman for the opportunity to take part in the debate, some members from the treasury benches started laughing. Mr Kharge asked why they were laughing and added, “This is how they mislead me.” This evoked another round of laughter in the House. Former UPA spokesperson Sonia Gandhi was also seen smiling. The Congress president then added, “Mr Chairman also misleads me.”

Responding to this, Mr Dhankhar quipped, “We will delete this, that I do it too.” This time, it was Mr Kharge’s turn to laugh.

More banter was the follow. In his response to the President’s address, Mr Kharge said it was just focused on praising the government. At his point, the Congress president started referring to the speech by BJP MP Sudhanshu Trivedi. “Excuse me, I sometimes get confused between Dwivedi, Trivedi and Chaturvedi. I come from the South so I am not well-aware of this,” he said as the members banged the benches. Mr Dhankhar said with a smile, “We can have a half-an-hour discussion on this if you want.”

The light banter was in stark contrast from the mood in the House on Friday when Opposition members drew strong remarks from the Chairman for entering the Well. The Opposition MPs were demanding a debate on the irregularities in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for medical admissions in colleges across the country.

Mr Dhankhar had then said he was “pained” and “shocked” that the Leader of the Opposition had come to the Well.

In response, the Congress chief had said he was compelled to enter the Well because the Chairman “deliberately ignored me”. “It is his mistake… I went inside (the Well) to draw his attention… I was drawing his attention. He was only looking at the ruling party. As per the rules, he should look at me when I draw his attention. But instead, he deliberately ignored me to insult me. So what option was left? To draw attention, I would have to go inside or shout very loudly. I will definitely say that it is Chairman Sahab’s mistake.”

New Delhi:

Vice President and Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar will on Sunday inaugurate ‘Prerna Sthal’, which will house all statues of freedom fighters and other leaders that were earlier placed at different places in the Parliament complex.

An official statement said all members of Parliament have been invited to the event where the outgoing Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and other dignitaries will also be present.

While the Congress has criticised the decision to remove the statues from their existing place, the Lok Sabha secretariat has said their placements at different places made it difficult for visitors to see them properly.

“The ‘Prerna Sthal’ has been constructed so that the dignitaries and other visitors coming to Parliament House Complex could conveniently see and pay tributes at these statues in one place.

“An action plan has been made to make the life stories and messages of these great Indians available to the visitors through new technology,” it said.

The Congress has claimed that the idea behind relocating the statues of Mahatma Gandhi, B R Ambedkar and Chhatrapati Shivaji among others is to ensure that they are not in a prominent place where MPs could conduct peaceful and democratic protests.

The Lok Sabha secretariat said it may be recalled that even before this, during the construction work of the new Parliament Building, the statues of Mahatma Gandhi, Motilal Nehru and Chaudhary Devi Lal were shifted to other places in the complex.

Lawns and gardens have been laid around the statues at ‘Prerna Sthal’ to allow visitors to easily pay their tributes to them and also take inspiration from their lives through QR code, it added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Tehran:

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Wednesday met Iran’s acting President Mohammad Mokhber here and conveyed condolences over the tragic demise of President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian in a helicopter crash.

Jagdeep Dhankhar, who is leading the Indian delegation at the official funeral ceremony, paid tributes to Raisi, Amir-Abdollahian, and other Iranian officials who died in the crash.

A one-day state mourning was observed across India on Tuesday as a mark of respect for Raisi.

Hon’ble Vice-President, Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar paid tributes to Late President Dr. Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi, Late Foreign Minister Dr. Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and other Iranian Officials in Tehran today.

VP Dhankhar also met Dr. Mohammad Mokhber, Acting President of Iran and… pic.twitter.com/Rbkd9yltWT

— Vice-President of India (@VPIndia) May 22, 2024

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar paid tributes to late President Raisi, late Foreign Minister Amir-Abdollahian, and other Iranian officials in Tehran today, his office said in a post on X along with pictures of the event.

“VP Jagdeep Dhankhar met Acting President of Iran, Dr. Mohammad Mokhber in Tehran today. VP conveyed condolences on the tragic demise of President Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister H. Amir-Abdollahian,” the External Affairs Ministry said in a separate post on X.

Jagdeep Dhankhar, who arrived here earlier in the day to attend the official funeral ceremony, was received by the Iranian authorities on his arrival in Tehran.

President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi have conveyed their condolences on the demise of Raisi.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar visited the embassy of Iran in New Delhi on Tuesday to convey India’s condolences on the loss.

Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei presided over a funeral on Wednesday for the country’s late president, foreign minister, and others killed in the crash. Thousands of people attended the funeral procession of the late president and his companions.

Several world leaders attended the official funeral ceremony in Tehran.

The Iranian president, the country’s foreign minister, and several other officials were found dead on Monday, hours after their helicopter crashed in a foggy, mountainous region in the northwestern part of the country, Iran state media reported.

Raisi, 63, and his entourage were heading to Tabriz city after returning from a visit to a locality on the Azerbaijan-Iran border on Sunday. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Tehran:

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Wednesday met Iran’s acting President Mohammad Mokhber here and conveyed condolences over the tragic demise of President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian in a helicopter crash.

Jagdeep Dhankhar, who is leading the Indian delegation at the official funeral ceremony, paid tributes to Raisi, Amir-Abdollahian, and other Iranian officials who died in the crash.

A one-day state mourning was observed across India on Tuesday as a mark of respect for Raisi.

Hon’ble Vice-President, Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar paid tributes to Late President Dr. Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi, Late Foreign Minister Dr. Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and other Iranian Officials in Tehran today.

VP Dhankhar also met Dr. Mohammad Mokhber, Acting President of Iran and… pic.twitter.com/Rbkd9yltWT

— Vice-President of India (@VPIndia) May 22, 2024

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar paid tributes to late President Raisi, late Foreign Minister Amir-Abdollahian, and other Iranian officials in Tehran today, his office said in a post on X along with pictures of the event.

“VP Jagdeep Dhankhar met Acting President of Iran, Dr. Mohammad Mokhber in Tehran today. VP conveyed condolences on the tragic demise of President Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister H. Amir-Abdollahian,” the External Affairs Ministry said in a separate post on X.

Jagdeep Dhankhar, who arrived here earlier in the day to attend the official funeral ceremony, was received by the Iranian authorities on his arrival in Tehran.

President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi have conveyed their condolences on the demise of Raisi.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar visited the embassy of Iran in New Delhi on Tuesday to convey India’s condolences on the loss.

Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei presided over a funeral on Wednesday for the country’s late president, foreign minister, and others killed in the crash. Thousands of people attended the funeral procession of the late president and his companions.

Several world leaders attended the official funeral ceremony in Tehran.

The Iranian president, the country’s foreign minister, and several other officials were found dead on Monday, hours after their helicopter crashed in a foggy, mountainous region in the northwestern part of the country, Iran state media reported.

Raisi, 63, and his entourage were heading to Tabriz city after returning from a visit to a locality on the Azerbaijan-Iran border on Sunday. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar will fly to Iran on Wednesday to attend an official ceremony to pay condolences on the death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian in a helicopter crash, the Ministry of External Affairs said.

A one-day state mourning is being observed across India on Tuesday as a mark of respect for Mr Raisi.

“Vice-President of India Jagdeep Dhankhar will pay a visit to the Islamic Republic of Iran on May 22 to attend official ceremony to pay condolences on the tragic demise of President Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and other Iranian officials in an unfortunate helicopter crash on May 19,” an MEA statement said on Tuesday.

President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi have conveyed their condolences on the demise of Raisi. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar visited the embassy of Iran in Delhi on Tuesday to convey India’s condolences on the loss.

The Iranian president, the country’s foreign minister and several other officials were found dead on Monday, hours after their helicopter crashed in a foggy, mountainous region in the northwestern part of the country, Iran state media reported.

Mr Raisi, 63, and his entourage were heading to the city of Tabriz after returning from a visit to a locality on the Azerbaijan-Iran border on Sunday.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

BJP national president JP Nadda and five other newly-elected members of the Rajya Sabha took oath on Saturday.

The oath was administered by Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar.

Hon’ble Vice-President of India & Chairman, Rajya Sabha, Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar administered oath to Shri Jagat Prakash Narayan Lal Nadda ji as the elected Member of Rajya Sabha in Parliament House today. @JPNaddapic.twitter.com/D9qLw6Hl4x

— Vice President of India (@VPIndia) April 6, 2024

Among others who also took oath include Ashokrao Shankarrao Chavan (Maharashtra), Chunnilal Garasiya (Rajasthan), Anil Kumar Yadav Mandadi (Telangana), Sushmita Dev and Mohammad Nadimul Haque (both West Bengal).

Ms. Sushmita Dev ji
Shri Mohammad Nadimul Haque ji @SushmitaDevAITC@MdNadimulHaque6pic.twitter.com/rS9DJ8Io7I

— Vice President of India (@VPIndia) April 6, 2024

“Vice-President of India & Chairman, Rajya Sabha, Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar administered oath to Shri Jagat Prakash Narayan Lal Nadda ji as the elected Member of Rajya Sabha in Parliament House today,” Mr Dhankhar’s office said in a post on X while sharing pictures of the oath-taking.

His office also said that the Chairman, Rajya Sabha, also administered oath to the elected members of the Rajya Sabha in Parliament House which include Ashokrao Shankarrao Chavan, Chunnilal Garasiya, Anil Kumar Yadav Mandadi, Sushmita Dev and Mohammad Nadimul Haque. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Stressing that India is a unique democracy, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar has said the country does not need lessons from anyone on the rule of law. His comments came after Germany, the US and the United Nations made remarks on the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. The questions posed to representatives of the US and the UN, which triggered the comments, were also about the freezing of the Congress’ bank accounts.

Speaking at an event on Friday, the Vice President said, “India is a democracy with a robust judicial system. This can’t be compromised by any individual or any group. India does not need lessons from anyone on rule of law.”

Mr Dhankhar emphasised that “equality before law is the new norm” in India and those who thought they are beyond the law are being held accountable.

In a possible reference to the AAP’s planned rally against Mr Kejriwal’s arrest at the Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi on Sunday, which will be attended by several leaders from the INDIA alliance, the Vice President said, “But what do we see? The moment the law takes its course, they take to the streets, high-decibel debates, camouflaging culpability of the worst nature by human rights. This is happening under our nose,” he added.

Describing the Indian judicial system as robust, independent and pro-people, he asked, “What is the justification for a person or an institution or an organisation to take to the streets when the law is set in motion?”

Addressing the 70th Founders’ Day celebrations of the Indian Institute of Public Administration, Mr Dhankhar also said people engaging in the “transgression of law” are now playing the victim card. 

“Corruption is not a passage to opportunity, employment or a contract anymore. It is a passage to jail… Can you go on a high moral ground that the corrupt must not be dealt with because it is a festive season or it is farming season? How can there be any season to save those who are culpable,” the Vice President asked.

After the remarks by representatives of the US and Germany, India had summoned their envoys. It had termed the comments “unwarranted”, “biased” and “unacceptable”, but has not reacted to the statement by a spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres so far. 

New Delhi:

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar expressed his strong disapproval of the use of sovereign platforms for making ignorant observations about CAA.

Emphasising that CAA is meant to give reprieve to those persecuted on religious grounds in our neighbourhood, VP Dhankar highlighted that none is being deprived of citizenship and still the narrative is so different.

“How can an observation on the Citizenship Amendment Act be made in ignorance of ground reality? We are considering the humanitarian aspect, a reprieve to those who have been persecuted on religious grounds in our neighbourhood. No one is being deprived. We are not inviting people to benefit from it. Benefit of this is being given to those who have been in this country for over a decade,” the VP said while addressing the American Bar Association (ABA) India Conference 2024.

Referring to the 2014 cutoff date for citizenship under CAA, the Vice President said that we are not inviting people to take advantage of it. “Benefit of this is being given to whom? Who are already in this country. They have been in this country for over a decade,” he stressed.

Addressing the 2nd edition of the American Bar Association Spring Conference as chief guest in Delhi, Mr Dhankhar highlighted the long history of India giving refuge to many religious communities.

The Vice-President said that those trying to teach lessons to us while being ignorant about ground realities must be rebuffed.

Underscoring the structured democratic tradition in India right from parliament to panchayat level, the Vice-President objected to the remarks made by some from sovereign platforms about India’s institutions. “We are not a nation to get scriptures from others,” Mr Dhankhar stated.

“We are a nation with a civilisational ethos of more than 5000 years. Look at the motto of G20: One Earth One Family One Future. We did not coin it for G20. It is the nectar of our civilisational worth, embedded in our ethos!,” he added.

VP further said, “There are some countries, from several platforms, they want to teach us what democracy is?” and asked the youth to speak against such things on social media and other platforms.

He called upon the young minds to enlighten the countries, trying to teach us lessons out of their ignorance, to engage in diligence.

Tracing the economic journey of India from fragile five to big five, the Vice-President questioned those who had been in power but only spread pessimism. ” My heart hurts when someone who was in a position of power in this country, in the field of economics, spread only pessimissim,” he added.

R Venkataramani, Attorney General of India, Tushar Mehta, Solicitor General of India, Lalit Bhasin, President, Society of Indian Law Firms (SILF), Pratibha Jain, Chair, India Committee, ABA and other dignitaries were also present on the occasion.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

In an apparent dig at the opposition and dynastic politics, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar today said democratic values blossom when there is equality before the law and where there is no patronage, favouritism, or nepotism.

Speaking at the NDTV Indian Of The Year awards, Mr Dhankhar said, “Democratic values optimally blossom and flourish when there is equality before the law when there is transparent and accountable governance, and where patronage, favouritism, and nepotism have no space. There was a time when these three pernicious tendencies dominated our workings. But that is a matter of the past.”

The privileged pedigree has disappeared and those who thought they were more equal than the others have realised this to their pain, he asserted.

“The privileged pedigree has disappeared. Equality before the law is the writing on the wall. Those who thought they were immune to the law, above the law, are different than others, have realised it to their pain. What can be a greater pain to the human soul and the young people in a democracy that some people are greater than others and they are more privileged? That system has gone.” 

“In the process, the morale of the youth has gone up,” he said.

The remarks are significant at a time when the country’s political discourse is seeing an impassioned debate between the ruling BJP and the Opposition over parivarwaad, or dynastic politics.

Laxmangarh (Rajasthan):

After Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot questioned Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar over his frequent visits to the poll-bound state, the latter said that it is not right to drag a person holding a constitutional post unnecessarily into politics.

In an apparent reply to the Rajasthan chief minister, Mr Dhankhar said that there must be respect for constitutional positions.

“Some people are saying why are you coming here again and again… I do not expect, people in authority to make statements in light of constitutional positions. This is not good for democracy. There must be respect for constitutional positions and all of us in togetherness, hand in hand, in collaboration and coordination with a consensual approach, have to serve the people at large…” the Vice President said while addressing the students and faculty members of Mody University of Science and Technology in Laxmangarh.

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has lashed out at Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on several occasions over his frequent visits to the poll-bound state.

However, Mr Dhankhar further said, “It is our country, we all are servants of this country whatever be our position, right from the President down the line up to the chief minister. We must be very sensitive, we should not generate such a public perception that a person holding a constitutional post should be unnecessarily dragged into politics, it is not right.”

Mr Dhankhar also recited a poem written by him, “Khata kya ki humne, pata hi nahi! Aapatti kyo hai unhe hamare ghar aane ki, pata hi nahi! Ye kaisa manzar hai, samjh se pare hai, Sawaliya nishan kyo hai apne ghar aane me, Kya julm hai? Pata hi nahi!”

The poem refers to someone having a problem with him going to their home. 

Addressing a programme in Jaipur, Mr Gehlot had said in September, “The Vice President is doing up-down (between Delhi and Rajasthan). Whether it is the Governor or the Vice President, we respect them… but elections are here.”

“Politicians should come but please do not send the Vice President, it is a Constitutional post. We respect the President and the Vice President. Yesterday the Vice President came and visited five districts. Is there any logic? It is election season. If you come now it will send all kinds of messages which is not good for democracy,” he had said later. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)