Cong Slams V-P Dhankhar For Comparing PM Modi With Mahatma Gandhi

Vice-President Dhankhar, at an event, had said, "I would like to say one thing, The 'mahapurush' of the last century was Mahatma Gandhi. Narendra Modi is the yugpurush of this century."

On Tuesday, the Congress launched a broadside against Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar after he drew parallels between Mahatma Gandhi and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Congress leader Manish Tewari, in a post on X, reacting to the Vice-President’s comments, said, “The Vice President never ceases to amaze. This one has however taken the cake of ……We may have personal views but to be completely unmindful of the position one occupies is beyond belief. Sad what has the vice Presidency come to…..”

With his post, Tewari also attached a news report that referred to the comments made by Dhankhar in his address at an event dedicated to Shrimad Rajchandraji, a Jain mystic and philosopher, on Monday.

Dhankhar, at the event, had said, “I would like to say one thing, The ‘mahapurush’ of the last century was Mahatma Gandhi. Narendra Modi is the yugpurush of this century.”

He added, “Mahatma Gandhi freed us from the slavery of the British with truth and non-violence, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has put the country on the path of progress on which we always wanted to see.”

Talking about similarities in both the personalities, Dhankhar further said, “One thing is common between these two great personalities, Mahatma Gandhi and PM Narendra Modi. They have reflected with respect to Shrimad Rajchandraji.”

Additionally, Congress MP Manickam Tagore lashed out at the Vice-President and dubbed his comments as “shameful”. Tagore said, in a post on X, “If you compare with Mahatma it’s shameful Sir, we all know there is a limit to sycophancy now you have crossed that limit, and to be in your chair and position and to be a sycophant does not add value Sir. With respect Vice President.” Tagore is also the Congress Goa in charge.

Meanwhile, this incident has once again proven that Dhankhar is no stranger to controversy. Speaking at a function to mark Constitution Day on Sunday, Dhankhar said that BR Ambedkar had “opposed inclusion of Article 370 in the Constitution during the Constituent Assembly debates, and that the provision “for years had made the life of people of Jammu and Kashmir hellish”.

The Vice-President said that with the abrogation of Article 370, the “country was thankfully back on tracks” and praised Prime Minister Modi for his “vision”. The Vice President also said that Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel had “100 percent success with the other princely states and the country’s history would have been very different if Sardar had been allowed to deal with the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir also.”

Dhankhar made these remarks even as the Vice President criticised the judiciary for “encroaching” into the space of the Executive. “Supremacy of the Parliament is absolute – it cannot be interfered with by the Judiciary or the Executive. Institutions survive only when sanctified by the Parliament. We cannot allow incursion into the domain of the Parliament,” the Vice President said.

The spat between the Judiciary and Executive has been widely reported in the media in recent times. Commenting on the recent events, Dhankhar said that “to ensure continued growth of Bharat, it is a must that the Executive, Judiciary and Legislature generate collaborative discourse rather than challenging…. there are bound to be issues, issues have to be ironed out. There must be convergence of attitude among the three Institutions.”