With former Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar staying out of the public eye since his July 21 resignation, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday raised concerns over his whereabouts and questioned why he had gone "completely silent."
Speaking at a function to felicitate the Opposition's joint vice presidential candidate B Sudarshan Reddy, Gandhi said there was a "story" behind Dhankhar stepping down, and wondered why the former vice president of India is in a situation where "he cannot say a word" and "has to hide."
"Where is the old Vice President gone. Why is he in hiding?" Gandhi said, addressing the gathering at the central hall of the Samvidhan Sadan.
The Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha said the day the Vice President resigned, KC Venugopal came to him and said the Vice President "is gone."
"There is a big story about why he resigned. Some of you might know it, some of you might not know it. But there is a story behind it," he said.
"And then there is a story about why he is in hiding. Why the (former) vice president of India is in a situation where he cannot say a word, one word, and has to hide...everybody knows it," he added.
"Suddenly, the person who used to 'burst forth' in Rajya Sabha has gone silent, completely silent. So, these are the times we are living in," Gandhi said.
Later, in a post on X, the Congress leader said, "Why is the former Vice President of India hiding? Why has such a situation arisen that they cannot come out and speak even a single word? Think, what kind of times are we living in."
In a sudden and abrupt move, Dhankhar resigned as Vice President on July 21 on health grounds 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.