Jagdeep Dhankhar not the first Vice President to resign midterm — here’s who did it before and why
Jagdeep Dhankhar resigned as Vice President of India on July 21. On Monday night, citing medical reasons, Dhankar, 74, tendered his resignation to President Droupadi Murmu.
Dhankhar’s resignation comes hours after he presided over the sitting of the Rajya Sabha as chairperson during the first day of Monsoon Session of Parliament.
The Vice President of India is the chairperson of the Rajya Sabha.
“To prioritise health care and abide by medical advice, I hereby resign as the Vice President of India, effective immediately, in accordance with Article 67(a) of the Constitution.
India’s Vice President
The Vice President of India is the second-highest constitutional office in the government of India after the President. In accordance with Article 63 of the Constitution of India, the Vice President discharges the functions of the President when a contingency arises due to the President’s resignation, removal, death, impeachment, or inability to discharge their functions.
Not the first
Dhankhar is not the first Vice President to quit before the end of the term. But he is, perhaps, the first to quit citing health reasons. Dhankar assumed the office on 11 August 2022, succeeding Venkaiah Naidu.
The Vice President holds office for five years. So ideally, Dhankhar should have continued to be the Vice President till August of 2027.
Many Vice Presidents of India have resigned before him from office since the post was established in 1952
To prioritise health care and abide by medical advice, I hereby resign as the Vice President of India, effective immediately.
In most cases, the reason has been to contest the Presidential election.
-In May 1969, Vice President VV Giri resigned following the death of President Zakir Husain. Giri eventually won the elections to become the fourth President of India.
–In July 1987, R Venkataraman resigned as Vice President to contest Presidential Elections. Venkataraman became the President of India, eventually.
–In July 1992, Shankar Dayal Sharma resigned as India’s Vice President to contest Presidential polls. Sharma became President on July 25, 1992.
–In July 1997, KR Narayanan resigned as Vice President to contest Presidential elections. Narayanan, like Sharma, became President of India.
-In July 2007, Bhairon Singh Shekhawat became the first Vice President to lose a presidential election. Following this defeat to the UPA-Left-backed candidate Pratibha Patil, Shekhawat resigned from the post on 21 July 2007.
