Dhankhar Attends V-P Radhakrishnan's Swearing-In Ceremony With Wife

NEW DELHI: Former Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar attended the swearing-in ceremony of his successor CP Radhakrishnan at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Friday.

At the ceremony with his wife Sudesh Dhankhar, this was his first public appearance since his sudden resignation from office on July 21 due to health concerns.

The former Vice President was seated in the front row next to his predecessor Venkaiah Naidu, next to whom another former Vice President, Hamid Ansari, was also seated.

After his sudden resignation, Dhankhar's prolonged absence drew questions from the Opposition, who had raised concerns over the lack of transparency surrounding his exit.

Dhankhar had resigned on the first day of the start of the Monsoon session of Parliament, amid indications that his souring ties with the ruling party might have pushed him to quit. He had not been seen in public or made any statements since his resignation, prompting the Opposition to raise concern about his "sudden disappearance" from public life and his "silence".

On July 21 after chairing the proceedings during the day, Dhankhar had resigned from the Constitutional post citing concerns over his health but none took it on face value and attributed it to growing growing differences between him and the Narendra Modi government.

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Meanwhile, CP Radhakrishnan took oath as the Vice President of India on Friday at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi. President Droupadi Murmu administered the oath of office to Radhakrishnan.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Ministers Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, JP Nadda, Nitin Gadkari and other dignitaries were present at the ceremony. According to a top NDA source, the morning of September 12 was chosen for the ceremony as the time was found to be "auspicious by the pandit ji," said the NDA source.

Ahead of the ceremony, several political leaders arrived in Delhi to attend the event.

Those present in the capital include Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, Punjab Governor and Chandigarh Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria, Jharkhand Governor Santosh Gangwar, and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav.

Chandrapuram Ponnusamy Radhakrishnan the NDA nominee, was elected as the 15th Vice President of India on Tuesday, securing 452 votes against Opposition candidate and former Supreme Court judge B. Sudershan Reddy, who received 300 votes. Previously, he served as the Governor of Maharashtra. He also served as the Governor of Jharkhand from February 2023 to July 2024. He also held additional charge as the Governor of Telangana and Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry between March and July 2024.A veteran BJP leader, Radhakrishnan, was elected to the Lok Sabha from Coimbatore twice and served as the Tamil Nadu BJP State President. (With ANI inputs)