Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: Jagdeep Dhankhar, resigned as 14th Vice President late on July 21, citing health issues. He had made his mark both in Rajya Sabha as well as in Bengal as the Governor of the state. An outspoken leader, his tenure in the second highest office of India was marked by regular run-ins with the Opposition and strong comments on the judiciary over the issue of separation of powers.
The 74-year-old had said earlier this month that he would retire at the “right time”, subject to “divine interventions”. The Opposition Congress remarked that there was more to his resignation than meets the eye.
In his letter to President Droupadi Murmu, Mr Dhankhar had said his resignation would be effective immediately and thanked her and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“I am deeply thankful for the invaluable experiences and insights I have gained as Vice President in our great democracy. It has been a privilege and satisfaction to witness and partake in India’s remarkable economic progress and unprecedented exponential development during this significant period. Serving in this transformative era of our nation’s history has been a true honour,” he wrote in his letter to the President.
Born in a farmer’s family in Kithana, a small village in Rajasthan, Mr Dhankhar’s journey to the second highest office in the country has been cited frequently as a study in ability, grit and determination. An alumni of Chittorgarh’s Sainik School and later, the Rajasthan University, he became a lawyer in the Rajasthan High Court and subsequently the Supreme Court, before turning to politics.
