Trinamool raises questions over Dhankhar's absence, CPI writes him a letter

NEW DELHI: Exactly a month after he resigned, on the first day of the monsoon session of Parliament, Trinamool Congress raised the issue of former vice president Jagdeep Dhankhar’s disappearance from public life, and Communist Party of India wrote to Dhankhar expressing grave concern over his sudden resignation and his silence and withdrawal from the public domain since then.

On Wednesday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had raised similar concerns as he asked, “where has the old VP gone?”

As the Parliament session came to an end on Thursday, TMC’s Derek O’ Brien reflected on the state of affairs under the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre. “No byte, no video, no trace...,” he said referring to Dhankhar’s disappearance since Aug 21 evening, when he submitted his resignation, citing health reasons.

The TMC leader also took a dig at BJP for failing to elect a party president yet. “No candidate, no face, no consensus....,” he said.

Meanwhile, CPI MP and leader of the party in the Rajya Sabha, P Sandosh Kumar, in his letter to Dhankhar, said that his resignation a month ago, citing “health reasons,” came as a shock to Parliament and the entire country. “While differences during his tenure in the Chair were natural, the dignity of the office he held was always respected,” he said.

What has caused greater anxiety, the letter noted, is Dhankhar’s complete absence from the public domain since his resignation. The CPI MP observed that Dhankhar has not addressed the press, nor appeared in public, with even his pre scheduled events being cancelled. “Such silence and withdrawal, after citing health reasons, has understandably created deep concern among fellow parliamentarians and citizens regarding his well-being,” Kumar said.

The letter urged Dhankhar to respond and reassure Parliament and the public about his well-being at the earliest. Kumar said that while the process to elect his successor is already underway, clarity and reassurance from Dhankhar himself would help “dispel speculation, unease, and unanswered questions that continue to surround his unprecedented resignation”.