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NDTV
12 hours ago
- Politics
- NDTV
Jagdeep Dhankhar Resigns: How Powerful Is The Vice-President Of India?
New Delhi: Jagdeep Dhankhar resigned as India's Vice President on Monday, citing health concerns, two years before the end of his five-year term. In his resignation letter addressed to President Droupadi Murmu, the 74-year-old Jat leader said that he'd step down with immediate effect. Mr Dhankar's resignation came on the first day of the Parliament's Monsoon session. As Rajya Sabha chairman, he was due to lead major sessions, including the Business Advisory Committee meeting, on Tuesday. "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 prioritise health care and abide by medical advice, I hereby resign as Vice President of India, effective immediately, in accordance with Article 67(a) of the Constitution," Mr Dhankhar added. In the August 2022 Vice-Presidential election, Mr Dhankhar defeated opposition candidate Margaret Alva with 528 of 710 valid votes, securing 74.37 per cent - the largest margin of victory since 1992. How Powerful Is The Vice-President Of India? Second-highest constitutional post The Vice-President of India holds the second-highest constitutional office for a five-year term. But they can continue in office until their successor takes over, irrespective of the expiry of the term. The tenure in office is five years, and they are eligible for reelection. Chairperson (ex-officio) of the Rajya Sabha The Vice-President serves as the ex-officio Chairperson of the Council of States (Rajya Sabha) and has no other paid positions. As the ex-officio Chairperson, they preside over the sessions of the Council of States. During periods when they act as President, they don't perform the duties of the Chairperson and aren't entitled to the corresponding salary or allowances. Acting President In the event of a casual vacancy in the President's office due to death, resignation, or removal, the Vice-President acts as President until a new President is elected, as soon as possible and no later than six months from the date of the vacancy. When the President is unable to discharge their functions, the Vice-President takes over, enjoying the same powers, immunities, and privileges as the President, and receiving the same emoluments and allowances. Resignation The Vice-President can resign by submitting their resignation to the President, which becomes effective from the day it's accepted. They can also be removed from office by a resolution passed by the Rajya Sabha and agreed to by the Lok Sabha, with a minimum notice period of 14 days.
The Print
a day ago
- Politics
- The Print
Jagdeep Dhankhar: Outspoken Vice President who took on judiciary, had daily run-ins with opposition
While he was admitted to AIIMS for a few days in March this year and appeared not so well at a few occasions, he has been mostly seen as lively and energetic in his public appearances, including in Parliament. The 74-year-old leader, who cited medical reasons to resign from the Vice President's post after an eventful day in Rajya Sabha under his chairmanship, had said this month only at an event that he would retire at the 'right time', subject to 'divine interventions'. New Delhi, Jul 21 (PTI) Jagdeep Dhankhar, who once called himself a 'reluctant politician', took on the Judiciary over the issue of separation of powers and had face-offs with the opposition in the Rajya Sabha virtually every day during his stint as the Vice President. Dhankhar's abrupt resignation nearly two years before his tenure was to end followed a day of surprising developments in the Rajya Sabha for the government, as an opposition-sponsored notice for a motion to remove Justice Yashwant Varma was submitted to him and he mentioned it in the House. The development came as a jolt to the ruling alliance, which had sponsored a similar notice in the Lok Sabha and taken the opposition on board. Dhankhar was the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance's candidate in the 2022 election for Vice President, who is the ex-officio Chair of the Rajya Sabha. He is the third Vice President of India after V V Giri and R Venkataraman to resign during tenure. Giri and Venkataraman had resigned from the post of Vice President to contest the presidential election. Dhankhar will also go down in history as the only vice president against whom the opposition brought a notice of removal for 'partisan' conduct as the chairman of the Upper House. Unmindful of the notice, which was rejected by Deputy Chair Harivansh, Dhankhar had dubbed it as a 'rusted' vegetable-cutting knife which was used for a bypass surgery. Dhankhar, who had been associated with the Janata Dal and the Congress, joined the BJP only in 2008 after a hiatus of nearly a decade. He championed issues related to the Other Backward Classes, including the grant of OBC status to the Jat community in Rajasthan. While his surprise appointment as the West Bengal governor in 2019 brought him back to the political limelight, he did not shy away from the hurly-burly of politics and was caught in frequent run-ins with the state's ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC). As the vice president and Chair of the Rajya Sabha, his frequent verbal clashes went beyond the TMC. On a variety of issues, from House disruptions to allegations of bills being passed with little discussion, he took on the opposition. Dhankhar, in particular, targeted top lawyers who are also Rajya Sabha members representing opposition parties, especially the Congress. A lawyer by profession, Dhankhar took on the Judiciary, especially on the issue of separation of powers. He was harsh in his criticism of the Supreme Court decision to strike down the National Judicial Appointments Commission Act which sought to overturn the collegium system of appointing SC and high court judges. In the presence of then Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, he had questioned the top court for striking down a law passed with near unanimity by the two Houses. He had also slammed MPs, saying when the law was struck down, there was 'not even a whisper' of protest by the lawmakers. Designated as Senior Advocate by the Rajasthan High Court in 1990, Dhankhar had practised primarily in the Supreme Court and his focus area of litigation was steel, coal, mining and international commercial arbitration, amongst others. As a lawyer, he was associated with the black buck case involving actor Salman Khan and had played a key role in getting him bail. He appeared in various high courts in the country till assuming the office of the West Bengal governor in July 2019. Dhankhar, who took to cricket in his school days and also had keen interest in spirituality and meditation, began his political journey with the Janata Dal and won the Lok Sabha elections in 1989, held under the shadow of the Bofors scandal, from Jhunjhunu in Rajasthan. He had a brief stint as Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs under Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar. In his initial journey as a politician, Dhankhar was influenced by Devi Lal and later shifted to the Congress during the tenure of Prime Minister P V Narasimha Rao. After hanging up his boots as a member of the Rajasthan legislative assembly, Dhankhar focused on his legal career, practising as a lawyer in the Supreme Court. While naming him as the NDA candidate for the vice president's post, BJP had described him as 'Kisan putra', a move seen in the political circles aimed at reaching out to the politically significant Jat community which had participated in huge numbers in the year-long farmers' protests against agriculture reform measures unveiled in June 2020. After his election as the vice president. Dhankhar met several groups of farmers in the national capital, Haryana and Rajasthan, urging them to go beyond agriculture and get into food processing and marketing to increase income. On one occasion, his words sounded like a harsh criticism of the Modi government. Speaking at a ceremony to mark the centenary of ICAR-CIRCOT in Mumbai in December 2024, Dhankhar had said, 'Agriculture minister, I request you to please tell me, what was promised to the farmer? Why was the promise not fulfilled? What should we do to fulfil the promise? 'There was a movement last year, there is a movement this year, too.' 'The wheel of time is turning, we are not doing anything. For the first time, I have seen India changing. For the first time, I am realising that developing India is not our dream but our goal. India was never at such heights in the world. 'When this is happening, then why is my farmer worried and suffering? The farmer is the only one who is helpless,' Dhankhar had said, reaching out to the farmers. Born on May 18, 1951, in village Kithana in Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan, Dhankhar went to Sainik School, Chittorgarh on full scholarship. PTI NAB KR BJ RT This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
The Hindu
a day ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar resigns citing medical issues
Vice-President of India Jagdeep Dhankhar on Monday (July 21, 2025) tendered his resignation to President Droupadi Murmu, citing medical advice, and in order to prioritise health care 'I hereby resign as the Vice President of India, effective immediately, in accordance with Article 67(a) of the constitution,' he said in a statement posted on social media. 'I extend my deepest gratitude to Your Excellency the Hon'ble President of India for her unwavering support and the soothing wonderful working relationship we maintained during my tenure I express my deep gratitude to the Hon'ble Prime Minister and the esteemed Council of Ministers. Prime Minister's cooperation and support have been invaluable, and I have leamed much during my time in office,' he added. His resignation comes just as the Parliament has commenced its Monsoon Session, with the Vice-President assuming the role of Chair of Rajya Sabha. Elected Vice-President in 2022 Mr. Dhankhar was sworn in as the Vice-President of India on August 11, 2022 Known for his highly visible tenure as West Bengal Governor with his frequent run-ins with Trinamool Congress (TMC), Mr Dhankhar was declared elected as the Vice President on August 6 after he secured 528 votes against his Opposition's joint candidate Margaret Alva who managed only 182 votes. He had a long legal career at the Supreme Court and the Rajasthan High Court and a brief stint as a Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Minister at the Centre in the Chandrashekhar government. Mr Dhankhar, who had been associated with the Janata Dal and the Congress, joined the BJP only in 2008 after a gap of almost 10 years. He has championed issues related to Other Backward Classes, including the grant of OBC status to the Jat community in Rajasthan. While announcing his candidature for the vice presidential election, the BJP described him as a 'kisan putra,' a move seen as reaching out to the politically significant Jat community which had participated in huge numbers in the year-long farmers' protests.
Mint
4 days ago
- Business
- Mint
Morii Design: How a Gandhinagar-based studio is sewing up a stitch library
Under the shade of a tree, a group of Kachhi Rabari women are huddled together. With their black lehngas tucked between their legs and their veils draped across their foreheads, their eyes follow the slender needles darting between their fingers. The women giggle and trade stories with each other, as they embroider the fabrics with their generational knowledge of Rabari bharath (or embroidery). Leading them is Brinda Dudhat, a product of National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, who in 2019 co-founded Morii Design, a Gandhinagar-based textile design studio that crafts riveting textile tapestries using the erudite wisdom of over 180 artisans across 12 villages in India. The studio reimagines folk patchwork and motifs, embroidery techniques and block printing with modern flair. With the onset of machines that could master and replicate even the most complex handmade techniques, regional and rural thread-works unknowingly began to recede into oblivion. Dudhat noticed the change at the source: the women in pastoral and seminomadic communities, who once took hours embroidering their trousseaus for personal pleasure, were now assembling their clothing using machine-aided decorations. 'It was really surprising," says Dudhat, 30. 'There are some very complex stitches in Rabari embroidery alone. Now, however, there are machine-made ribbons available that replicate those stitches. So, the women stack these ribbons on to their dresses and just stitch them. Instead of traditional mirror embroidery, they use reflective acrylic or plastic discs. So, their wedding attires, which were once entirely hand-embroidered by them, now feature machine-made imitations," where only the smaller areas are filled in by their own creativity. Dudhat wanted to breathe a new life into these folk textile crafts—rekindling both pride and interest among the artisans, while monetarily empowering them as well. 'Craft has a PR problem," says Kabir, 33, Dudhat's partner and the other half of Morii Design. An NID graduate, he manages marketing. Together, the pair realised they needed to create a 'stitch library"; not only did they need to catalogue various Indian embroidery techniques but also create a comprehensive repository of new stitch combinations . 'At the moment, we are working with four different communities: the Jat community from Kutch, sujani artisans from Bihar, kantha craftspeople from West Bengal, and the Rabari community from Kutch," says Kabir. 'We have developed almost 40 new functional combinations in the Rabari embroidery itself, and are still in the process of creating many more." Morii Design is also working closely with Bela block printing's last known custodian Mansukhbhai Pitambar Khatri, while documenting the motifs of this age-old art form. At the forefront of the studio, though, are the women artisans. Back in 2019, when Dudhat had first considered working with them, she faced resistance. On the advice of a friend who mentioned a particular community whose handiwork had remained largely unexplored by modern designers, Dudhat rode pillion for two hours to a village 35km from Bhuj, to meet a Garasia Jat cluster. The pastoral Muslim community's personal clothing showcases their detailed geometric designs and intricate cross-stitch embroidery called Jat bharath. The womenfolk waved her off: 'Nahi hoga—not possible". Undeterred, the ambitious and optimistic 24-year-old at the time, continued to return to the village the following months, gradually earning the women's trust. The women hadn't worked with designers before, but the promise of consistent work and a stable income was deeply reassuring. 'Today, the Garasia Jats are the longest collaborating cluster," Kabir declares. In Japanese, mori translates to 'forest"—one that's lush and deeply alive. After spending a semester at Tama Art University in Tokyo, Japan (2015-2016), Dudhat found herself drawn to the 'Mori Girl" aesthetic, a Japanese fashion subculture that romanticises a life that's in harmony with nature. The palette is inspired by the woods: muddy browns, moss greens, soft whites and calming pastels. The style felt like a natural extension of her own sensibilities. That quiet, forest-like elegance now runs through the visual identity of Morii Design. 'So, much of our work is about reconnecting with nature, and reminding people of the importance of trees, forests and the ecosystems we so easily take for granted," Dudhat says. Each tapestry or wall art is distinct with striking colours and abstractions. The process begins at Dudhat's studio, where she designs a prototype. First, she assembles a base: a patchwork of fabrics sourced from weavers across India. 'Just by looking at them, ideas begin to take shape, where different colours come together almost instinctively. The patchwork is created first, and then I draw on top of it, imagining the textures with embroidery threads. It's a very intuitive process." Dudhat then takes these prototypes to the artisan cluster. The craftswomen are invited to choose the design they feel most drawn to. 'Some of the older Rabari women are more inclined to do mirror embroidery, for instance, while many sujani craftswomen opt for larger pieces," says Kabir. 'Bigger is better for them, not only monetarily but when they hold the finished work and stretch out their arms, they experience immense pride in seeing the full scale of what they've created." The process of letting craftswomen choose what resonates with them offers them creative freedom. But with a wide variety of embroidery methods and intricacies, it was clear that a uniform percentage model wouldn't be practical—'Especially since many of our pieces overlap multiple crafts," Kabir explains. 'So we sat with the artisans and co-created a wage system from scratch, beginning with a base rate that they felt was fair, and moved forward from there." In the spirit of contemporising, Morii Design brings together diverse folk handiwork traditions. A single piece might begin in one region adorned with colourful motifs printed using 200-year-old Bela blocks, then travel to a cluster in West Bengal to be kantha-stitched, or Bihar for sujani embroidery, and finally get bedazzled with tiny mirrors by Rabari women. The ultimate production is one that has passed many hands, and carries with it the emotions and stories of multiple lives. 'That said, it's also important for us to maintain the geographical integrity of the technique," says Dudhat. For example, a running kantha stitch could be easily replicated by other clusters and communities. 'But we ensure that a technique that specifically belongs to a certain region is executed there itself, since it has evolved in that place over generations." At the moment, the focus is on digitising the stitch library, which remains private for now, with the new combinations intended to help train the artisans. As Morii Design stitches tradition and contemporary storytelling together, their work stands as a quiet but powerful act of preservation. Radhika Iyengar is the author of Fire on the Ganges: Life Among the Dead in Banaras, and an independent arts and culture journalist. She posts @radhika_iy
Indian Express
09-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Jackson Wang teaches dance to Vijay Varma, Jaideep Ahlawat, Jitendra Kumar, Pratik Gandhi says ‘yeh to garba hai'. Watch Kapil Sharma show promo
To see actors Vijay Varma, Jaideep Ahlawat, Jitendra Kumar, and Pratik Gandhi in a film together would be a dream come true for many fans. While we wait for that dream to be fulfilled, Kapil Sharma has managed to bring all these actors together on the stage of The Great Indian Kapil Show Season 3. The comedian shared the trailer of the upcoming episode of his comedy talk show, where he is seen having loads of fun with the critically acclaimed actors. The clip shows Kapil commenting on Jaideep's aura and joking that he looks like a gritty policeman in real life too, just like his character from Paatal Lok. He quipped that just Jaideep's presence at a liquor shop would be enough for the seller to hand over a bottle without asking any questions. Kapil also asked Jaideep how he proposed to his wife. Jaideep dismissed the question, saying, 'Do you seriously think a Jat boy knows the art of proposing?' Kapil then took turns to joke about the actors. Looking at Pratik, he said that the actor's face and appearance are proof that he comes from a dry state — Gujarat. Later, he asked Panchayat star Jitendra Kumar, commonly known by his character name Jeetu Bhaiya from Kota Factory, how he reacts when girls approach him for selfies while calling him 'Jeetu bhaiya.' Jitendra cheekily admitted that he doesn't give selfies to girls who call him bhaiya. Meanwhile, Vijay joked about Netflix is paying his bills. A post shared by Netflix India (@netflix_in) Then Krushna Abhishek and Kiku Sharda appeared on screen dressed as female security guards. The audience was in splits as Krushna began flirting with Jitendra, making Vijay and Pratik hide in embarrassment. The trailer also showed Sunil Grover back in action. The biggest surprise was kept for the end as Korean actor-singer Jackson Wang made a special appearance. He was seen enjoying himself and teaching a dance step to the actors. Seeing Jackson's dance move, Pratik couldn't help but joke, 'This is garba,' sending the entire group into laughter. This is the third Season of The Great Indian Kapil Show. The last episode of the latest season featured cricketers Abhishek Sharma, Rishabh Pant and Yuzvendra Chahal, along with coach and former cricketer Gautam Gambhir.
