Daily Briefing: V-P Jagdeep Dhankhar resigns; behind 2006 Mumbai blasts case acquittals

Dhankhar took charge of the V-P office in August 2022, setting off a turbulent journey. So far, he’s the only V-P against whom the Opposition brought a notice of removal for “partisan” conduct as the Rajya Sabha Chairman.

The Opposition has raised questions over the abrupt resignation, given that there were no indications during the day or before the start of Parliament’s Monsoon Session. Many have wondered if there is more to it than meets the eye. Dhankhar had been hospitalised earlier this year for a procedure after complaining of uneasiness, but has been back to official duty since then.

A BJP source told The Indian Express that the government was left ’embarrassed’ after Dhankhar moved the Opposition’s motion to remove Justice Yashwant Varma in the Upper House on Monday just as the government was preparing to bring its own motion in the Lok Sabha. Dhankhar was caught in a bind since the Opposition had enough numbers and he could not reject them. Some BJP leaders have also opined that the party was unhappy with Dhankhar’s frequent run-ins with the judiciary.

So, what’s next? The Constitution has no set deadline for filling in a vacant V-P position. However, elections are to be held “as soon as possible”. Here’s what that will entail.

On that note, let’s get to the rest of the day’s headlines.

Big Story

Nearly two decades ago, on July 11, 2006, Mumbai was struck with one of the most devastating terror attacks in the country’s history. A series of blasts ripped through seven Mumbai local train coaches, killing 189 commuters and injuring 824 others. On Monday, the Bombay High Court acquitted all 12 men convicted in the case, noting that the prosecution had “utterly failed to establish offences beyond reasonable doubt against the accused”.

How the case fell: The court has questioned the “genuineness” of the accused’s confessions, given that they were identical to each other, though different DCPs recorded them. The court also noted allegations of custodial torture. It also flagged gaps in witness statements. For instance, it observed that taxi drivers who gave the statement that two accused travelled in their taxis were silent for 100 days after the incident, and that there was no special reason to trigger their memory about the faces and description of the accused after such a long period. My colleagues Omkar Gokhale and Apurva Vishvanath explain in detail.

The accused: Charged under the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crimes Act (MCOCA), five of the accused were handed death sentences and seven were given life terms. Hours after the Monday verdict, eight accused were released from different jails. Two continue to be held due to pending cases against them, while another was already released on parole. One of them died due to Covid-19 in 2021. The accused had filed “20-25 RTI applications a day” to seek information about police logbooks, hospital records and investigators’ records to build the defence.

Also read: 17 yrs ago, gaps in probe, question mark over identity of accused

From the Front Page

Foolproof: The Election Commission (EC) has refused to accept the Supreme Court’s suggestion to consider Aadhaar, voter ID and ration cards for its Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar. However, it noted that it was its “Constitutional authority” to determine whether the requirement of citizenship is fulfilled by electors. Still, an individual’s citizenship will “not terminate” on account of being held ineligible as an elector. It also gave reasons for not accepting the SC’s suggestion. Read.

Must Read

A third black box? In the aftermath of the Air India plane crash, one question has sparked intense speculation globally: What happened inside the cockpit? In its wake, another debate has resurfaced: Should aircraft cockpits have a video recorder? While investigators have long demanded a third black box, which could help bring more clarity, pilot unions have strongly pushed back against the idea.

The fatal bite: The recent death of 42-year-old Deepak Mahawar, a popular snake rescuer from Madhya Pradesh’s Guna district, has put a spotlight on the long list of such casualties. He is not an isolated case. Jay Mazoomdaar looks at the gaps in this informal industry, which has both social media influencers earning a following for “snake stunts” and expert handlers, who may play by the book but still face significant dangers on the job.

And Finally…

🤘🎸 Is rock and roll dying? The early 2000s saw Indians obsessed with rock and roll. And as the independent music scene burst onto the scene, local bands emerged. They may have started with covers of Led Zeppelin or The Beatles, but went on to find their sound. It seemed that the thirst for rock could never be satiated — until today, when the craze appears to have died down. Rock and roll may be losing the battle to the algorithm, but veteran musicians like Parikrama’s founder, Subir Malik, say the live event space may save the genre.

🎧 Before you go, do tune in to the latest ‘3 Things’ podcast episode. Today’s lineup: Why Gurgaon floods, measuring India’s inequality, and VS Achuthanandan’s passing.

That’s all for today, folks! Until tomorrow,
Sonal Gupta

Business As Usual by EP Unny