Constitutional offices are not ceremonial or ornamental: Dhankar

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar has hit back at criticism that his comments criticising the Supreme Court for setting timelines for the President and governors in dealing with legislations passed by state legislatures were over the top and not in keeping with the ceremonial nature of his post.

Speaking at a function on Tuessday, Dhankar said the notion that constitutional offices are ceremonial or ornamental was incorrect and showed a poor understanding of the role of such personages in public life. Dhankar has often spoken of the primacy of Parliament in legislative business, intervening on one occasion during the discussion on the Wakf amendment bill to pull up an MP who suggested the law will soon be overturned by the courts.

“For any democracy, every citizen has a pivotal role. I find it inconceivably intriguing that some have recently reflected that constitutional offices can be ceremonial or ornamental. Nothing can be far distanced from a wrong understanding of the role of everyone in this country, constitutional functionary or a citizen,” the Vice President said.

Dhankar said citizens are supreme because a nation and democracy are built by citizens and every one of them has a role. “The soul of democracy resides and pulsates in every citizen. Democracy will blossom, its values will get heightened when citizen is alert, citizen contributes and what citizen contributes there is no substitution of that…”he said.

The comments come amid strong objection taken to the Supreme Court’s interventions that have in effect altered legislations by Bharatiya Janata Party MPs. The statement of BJP MP that the SC was responsible for civil wars was disowned by the party president J P Nadda as it was seen to have crossed a line for directly attacking the chief justice.

But the issue of whether the judiciary is indulging in overreach remains current and much in discussion in editorial columns or in the more cacophonous sphere of social media. The Centre is set to vigorously defend the Wakf bill recent passed by Parliament, arguing that it has gone through a long and rigorous consultative process.

On the other hand, while responding to a plea seeking central rule in West Bengal, a bench of the SC observed that the court is already facing criticism for intervening in legislative or governance matters. Yet, the courts have not hesitated from intervening in matters ranging from traffic managements to banning fire crackers even though some matters have awaited attention for years.

Constitutional officesdemocracyIndian ConstitutionJagdeep DhankarSupreme Court of IndiaVice presidentWaqf Act