Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar reignites debate on judicial powers, citing Justice HR Khanna’s bold dissent during the Emergency. He asserts Parliament’s supremacy and criticizes recent Supreme Court interventions.
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NEW DELHI: Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar made strong remarks about the judiciary while speaking at Delhi University’s Campus Law Centre. He said that the Parliament is “supreme” and reminded everyone about the brave stand taken by Justice Hans Raj Khanna, a well-known former Supreme Court judge.
Justice Khanna was famous for speaking against the Indira Gandhi government during the Emergency in 1975. He was also the uncle of the current Chief Justice of India, Sanjiv Khanna.
The Vice President was speaking at the launch of Kartavyam, a special lecture series to celebrate 75 years of India adopting the Constitution. While starting his speech, Mr. Dhankhar mentioned Delhi University Vice-Chancellor Yogesh Singh, who had spoken about Justice HR Khanna as an old student (alumnus) of the Campus Law Centre.
Mr. Dhankhar then described the Emergency as the “darkest period of democracy“.
He said that people must understand the reason behind observing Constitution Day and Samvidhan Hatya Divas.
“On November 29, 1949, the Constitution was adopted. And it was ravaged on June 25, 1975. That was the darkest period of democracy,”
-Mr. Dhankhar said while talking about the Emergency years.
He explained how the Supreme Court, during the Emergency, did not follow the advice of nine High Courts, which said that fundamental rights should not be suspended.
“There was one dissent voice, and that was from an alumnus of this place,”
-Mr. Dhankhar added, referring to Justice HR Khanna, who gave a different opinion from the other judges at that time.
Who Was Justice HR Khanna?
Justice Hans Raj Khanna became a Supreme Court judge in 1971. He was expected to become the Chief Justice of India in 1977, but that didn’t happen. During the Emergency, the government led by Indira Gandhi had imposed very strict rules across the country.
In 1976, a five-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court gave a decision in the famous ADM Jabalpur vs Shivkant Shukla case. The Court said that even the right to personal liberty could be suspended during an Emergency.
In that 4:1 judgment, Justice HR Khanna was the only one who disagreed. He gave a bold dissenting opinion that became very famous later. But after this, the government appointed Justice MH Beg as Chief Justice instead of him. Feeling insulted, Justice Khanna resigned soon after.
Justice HR Khanna passed away in 2008. Nine years after his death, the Supreme Court, in another case — Puttuswamy vs Union of India, overruled the 1976 judgment and accepted that his dissent was right.
Today, Justice HR Khanna is seen as a symbol of resistance to government overreach. The BJP has often mentioned how the Congress government treated him to criticize the Congress party.
His Nephew, Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna
The current Chief Justice of India, Sanjiv Khanna, is known to admire his uncle very much. Sources say that his father, Justice Dev Raj Khanna, who was a Delhi High Court judge, and his mother Saroj Khanna, a professor, wanted their son to become a chartered accountant.
They believed law was a hard profession. But Sanjiv Khanna was deeply inspired by his uncle.
“He always considered his uncle an idol and keenly followed his work,”
-a source close to the family told media.
It is said that he has saved all of Justice HR Khanna’s judgments, handwritten notes, and registers. When Justice Sanjiv Khanna became a Supreme Court judge in 2019, his first courtroom was the same one where Justice HR Khanna used to sit.
This courtroom also has a portrait of Justice HR Khanna.
Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna is set to retire next month, and Justice BR Gavai will become the next Chief Justice of India after him.
Vice President’s Strong Words About Judiciary
Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar continued his sharp criticism of the judiciary. He said that the real power in democracy lies with the people and their elected representatives.
“There is no visualisation in the Constitution of any authority above the Parliament. Parliament is supreme,”
-he said.
He added that the makers of the Constitution chose cooperation, not conflict.
“I find it inconceivably intriguing that some have recently reflected that Constitutional offices can be ceremonial and ornamental. Nothing can be far distant from a wrong understanding of the role of everybody in this country,”
-he explained.
The Vice President also said that every citizen must respect law and justice.
“Public order thrives when every individual acts as the guardian of law and justice. How can our democracy tolerate disruption, constitutional challenges and assaults on civilisation ethos,”
-he asked.
His comments came just days after he criticised the Supreme Court’s decision in the Tamil Nadu case, which asked the President and Governors to clear re-passed Bills within a set time. Dhankhar had said,
“We cannot have a situation where you direct the President of India and on what basis… Article 142 (has become a nuclear missile against Democratic forces, available to the judiciary 24 x 7,”
-he claimed.
BJP MPs Also Criticise Judiciary
At the same time, some BJP leaders have also spoken out against the judiciary. BJP MP Nishikant Dubey said that Parliament should stop working if the Supreme Court wants to take all the decisions.
He said,
“The Supreme Court is crossing its limits… when the Ram Mandir, Krishna Janmabhoomi, or Gyanvapi issue arises, you (Supreme Court) say, ‘Show us the paper’. But for mosques built after the Mughals came, you are saying how will you show papers? The Supreme Court is responsible for inciting religious wars in this country,”
-he said.
He also questioned how the Supreme Court could tell the President and Governors when to act. Another BJP leader, Dinesh Sharma, said that the President is “supreme” and cannot be challenged.
BJP Responds to the Controversy
The top leadership of the BJP has distanced itself from these comments. BJP president JP Nadda posted on X (formerly Twitter) and said,
“The Bharatiya Janata Party has nothing to do with the statements made by BJP MPs Nishikant Dubey and Dinesh Sharma on the judiciary and the Chief Justice of the country. These are their personal statements, but the BJP neither agrees with nor supports such statements. The BJP completely rejects these statements.”
Meanwhile, the Opposition parties have accused the BJP of trying to weaken the judiciary and threatening the independence of the courts.
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