Judiciary cannot direct president of India, act as 'super Parliament': VP Jagdeep Dhankhar
New Delhi, Apr 17 (PTI): Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Thursday questioned the judiciary setting a timeline for the president to take decisions and act as a "super Parliament", saying the Supreme Court cannot fire a "nuclear missile" at democratic forces.
Dhankhar's strong words to the judiciary came during his speech to Rajya Sabha interns, days after the Supreme Court sought to fix a timeline for the president to grant assent to the bills reserved for her consideration by the governor.
"So, we have judges who will legislate, who will perform executive functions, who will act as super Parliament and absolutely have no accountability because the law of the land does not apply to them," Dhankhar said.
The vice president also described Article 142, which grants plenary powers to the Supreme Court, as a "nuclear missile against democratic forces available to the judiciary 24x7".
"Article 142 has become a nuclear missile against democratic forces (and) available to (the) judiciary 24x7," he said.
Article 142 of the Constitution gives the Supreme Court the power to issue orders that ensure "complete justice" in any matter before it.
This power is also known as the Supreme Court's "plenary power".
"There is a directive to the president by a recent judgment. Where are we heading?
"What is happening in the country? We have to be extremely sensitive. It is not a question of someone filing a review or not. We never bargained for democracy for this day. President being called upon to decide in a time-bound manner, and if not, becomes law," Dhankhar said.
The vice president said his worries were at a "very highest level" and he had never thought in "my life" that he would have the occasion to see it.
He reminded the audience that the president of India is in a very elevated position.
"(The) president takes an oath to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution. Others, including ministers, the vice president, parliamentarians and judges take an oath to abide by the Constitution," Dhankhar said.
"We cannot have a situation where you direct the president of India and on what basis? The only right you have under the Constitution is to interpret the Constitution under Article 145(3). There it has to be five judges or more...," he said.
Stressing the principle of separation of powers, he underlined that when the government is elected by the people, the government is accountable to Parliament and to the people in the elections.
"There is a principle of accountability in operation. In Parliament, you can ask questions... But if this executive governance is by the judiciary, how do you ask questions? Whom do you hold accountable in elections?
"Time has come when our three institutions -- legislature, judiciary and executive -- must blossom... Any incursion by one in the domain of the other poses a challenge, which is not good…." Dhankhar said.
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IMF approves USD 206 million emergency funding for cyclone-hit Sri Lanka's recovery
Colombo (PTI): The IMF has approved an emergency funding of USD 206 million under its rapid finance instrument to help Sri Lanka “address the urgent needs arising from the catastrophic Cyclone Ditwah and preserve macroeconomic stability”.
The cyclone caused widespread destruction in the island nation and left over 643 people dead.
In a statement issued on Friday, the Washington-based International Monetary Fund (IMF) said the disaster has created urgent humanitarian and reconstruction needs, generating significant fiscal pressures and balance-of-payments needs.
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The emergency financial support provided by the IMF under the rapid finance instrument will help address these pressures, it said.
The IMF added that the cyclone devastation hit when the Fifth Review of Sri Lanka’s USD 2.9 billion bailout was nearing completion.
“Given the time needed to assess the economic impact of the cyclone and examine how an IMF-supported programme can best support Sri Lanka’s recovery and reconstruction efforts while preserving objectives and policy priorities, the Fifth Review has been deferred," it said.
"An IMF mission team will visit Sri Lanka in early 2026 to resume discussions,” it added.
The 48-month extended fund facility deal with the IMF in March 2023 carried hard reforms to Sri Lanka's welfare-based governance.
It was signed after Sri Lanka plunged into an unprecedented economic meltdown with its first-ever sovereign default.
Several hours before the IMF decision, the parliament here approved without a vote a supplementary estimate of LKR 500 billion, which the government said was required to restore the livelihoods of those affected by the disaster.
