Jagdeep Dhankar's exit camouflaged  as constitutional lie: Congress

The Congress on Saturday accused the government of showing signs of insecurity over its inability to control the narrative on impeachment motion against Justice Yashwant Varma.

Rajya Sabha MP and veteran Congress leader Abhishek Singhvi termed the resignation of Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar as a "political exit camouflaged as a constitutional lie".

In his counter-statement to Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju's claim that no impeachment motion was admitted in the Rajya Sabha other than the one admitted in the Lok Sabha, Singhvi in a presser said, "Did the Chairman not clearly make the Opposition motion a property of the House when he inquired from the Law Minister about the admission of a separate motion in the Lok Sabha?"

He said Dhankhar wanted both the Houses to join on the issue, and, perhaps, that was linked to his sudden resignation and silence.

"We believe that Dhankhar's resignation is a political exit camouflaged as a constitutional lie," he said.

Singhvi claimed that now a joint committee of Parliament for inquiry against Justice Varma would not be possible as the government only wanted to push forward its motion, admitted in the Lok Sabha.

"There's a difference between what they show and what they do and when it comes to issues related to accountability in the judiciary. The BJP is exhibiting precisely this kind of double-faced, hypocritical behaviour," he said.

He termed the government's move to push forward its motion in the Lok Sabha as "institutional sabotage and constitutional transgression".

"In a democracy and on an issue on which you have the support of most of the members of the Opposition, why do you want to be arrogant and pursue Ekla Chalo?" he questioned and accused the government of suffering from intoxication of power.

He accused the government of being "insecure" realising its inability to control the narrative on impeachment motion. In his jibe at the government, he said, "When power intoxicates the ruling regime to the point that it is prepared to institutionally sabotage its own Vice-President and its own RS Chairman, then democracy is imperilled. And only democracy, represented through the voice of its people, can intervene."

The Congress leader said now that only a committee from the Lok Sabha, instead of a joint committee of Parliament, would inquire against Justice Varma. He said the government may give ground to Justice Varma to challenge the entire impeachment motion proceedings.