Constitutional institutions must respect boundaries to ensure mutual respect: VP Jagdeep Dhankhar
Lucknow, May 1 (PTI): Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Thursday underscored the importance of constitutional institutions adhering to their defined limits, stating that mutual respect among them can only be ensured when each remains within its jurisdiction.
He warned that conflicts among institutions do not foster a thriving democracy.
Speaking at the launch of Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel's memoir "Chunautiyan mujhe pasand hain", Dhankhar referred to the recent terrorist attack in Pahalgam, saying that in such challenges the nation has to stand as one.
"Nation first should always be our guiding principle," he said, adding, "But the gravest challenges are those that arise from within."
Alluding to the recent Supreme Court response to the Waqf Amendment Bill passed by Parliament, he said, "The most dangerous challenges are the ones that come from within... which we cannot openly discuss. These have no logical basis, no connection to national development, and are rooted in governance. I have personally endured such challenges."
Reiterating his emphasis on institutional boundaries, the vice president stated, "It is our binding duty that all constitutional institutions respect each other - and such respect is only possible when institutions function within their respective domains. When there is confrontation, democracy does not flourish."
Dhankhar stressed that the Constitution calls for coordination, participation, deliberation, dialogue, and debate.
"To comment on a post as dignified as the President's is, in my opinion, a matter of deep reflection," he added.
"Every institution has its own defined role, and no institution should encroach on another's responsibility. We must honour the Constitution in its true spirit."
Drawing a clear line between the roles of different branches of government, he said, "Just as the legislature cannot deliver legal judgments - which is the judiciary's domain - similarly, the judiciary must refrain... I have the highest regard for the judiciary. Having practised law for over four decades, I can say we have some of the finest judges. But I appeal for a collaborative and cooperative approach."
Dhankhar had earlier publicly criticised the Supreme Court's intervention on the Waqf Amendment Act.
He also described freedom of expression and debate as essential elements of democracy but cautioned that when someone assumes himself absolute correct while dismissing all others as wrong "freedom of expression becomes a distortion".
He said, "Without debate and dialogue, the philosophical essence of our Vedas would vanish. That leads to ego and arrogance - both detrimental to free expression. India is the world's largest and oldest democracy with a vast cultural heritage. If anyone tries to challenge that under any circumstances, we must confront that challenge."
Recalling the Emergency, Dhankhar said, "Some believe public memory is short, but that's not true. Have we forgotten the Emergency? Though many years have passed, its dark shadows still loom. It was the darkest chapter in Indian history."
He congratulated Patel on her book and said, "Writing such a book is not easy - and writing it with honesty is even more difficult."
Merely writing "Chunautiyan Mujhe Pasand Hain" is itself a big challenge, he said.
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Two injuries, one DNF, a DQ as India end messy World Relays campaign
Gaborone (Botswana) (PTI): Amoj Jacob and Ragul Kumar got injured during the men's 4x400m and 4x100 races respectively as India ended their World Athletics Relays campaign in disappointment on the second day of competitions here on Sunday.
The Indian camp had high hopes of making the 2027 World Championships in the men's 4x400m relay but the team did not finish (DNF) the race as Jacob suffered cramps and pulled out of the race after taking the baton from the first leg runner Dharamveer Choudhary. Rajesh Ramesh and Vishal TK were to run in the third and fourth legs.
Those teams which could not qualify for the 2027 Beijing World Championships by reaching the final round of each of the six relay events on Saturday were given another chance in the second qualification round on Sunday.
The top two teams in each of the two heats (in all six relay events) booked the Beijing ticket on Sunday.
India will now have to try and qualify for the World Championships through the Top Lists of the World Athletics, which is a long and tedious process.
In the men's 4x100m race, third leg runner Ragul Kumar fell down the track after failing to hand over the baton inside the exchange zone to fourth leg runner Gurindervir Singh, which clearly showed the lack of coordination among the runners.
Harsh Santosh Raut and Animesh Kujur ran the first two legs.
The Indian quartet was disqualified and Kumar was seen being taken away from the Field of Play with the help of the volunteers.
It was a comedy of errors in the case of the women's 4x100m race, which saw the baton being dropped during an exchange between first leg runner Tamanna and second runner Nithya Gandhe, though the Indians finished the race in 53.09 seconds.
Gandhe started running quite a distance, but after realising that the baton was not in her hand, she turned and ran back to pick it up.
The only silver-lining for the Indian contingent was the national record time in the mixed 4x100m relay race, though the quartet of Ragul Kumar, Nithya Gandhe, Animesh Kujur and Sneha SS finished sixth in heat number two with a time of 41.35 seconds, bettering the previous national mark of 42.30 seconds set in March in Chandigarh.
The mixed 4x400m relay quartet of Theerthesh P Shetty, Kumari Saloni, Nihal William and Rashdeep Kaur ended at fifth in heat number one with a time of 3 minutes and 19.40 seconds.
On Saturday, all the five Indian relay teams had failed to make it to the respective final rounds and thus missed out on the 2027 World Championships berths.
