Fifty-five members of several opposition parties, including Kapil Sibal, Vivek Tankha, Digvijaya Singh, John Brittas, Manoj Kumar Jha, and Saket Gokhale on December 13 moved a notice in the Rajya Sabha for the impeachment of Allahabad High Court Judge Shekhar Kumar Yadav over his alleged controversial remarks at a Vishwa Hindu Parishad event on December 8.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has alleged that the Opposition leaders threaten whoverver speaks their truth after impeachment notices were moved against Rajya Sabha chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar and Allahabad High Court's Justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav recently.
Speaking at the World Hindu Economic Forum 2024 on Saturday, he reportedly said, "Whoever speaks the truth, these people will pressurise him with impeachment (motions), and still they talk about the Constitution. Look at their double standards."
Fifty-five members of several opposition parties, including Kapil Sibal, Vivek Tankha, Digvijaya Singh, John Brittas, Manoj Kumar Jha, and Saket Gokhale on December 13 moved a notice in the Rajya Sabha for the impeachment of Allahabad High Court Judge Shekhar Kumar Yadav over his alleged controversial remarks at a Vishwa Hindu Parishad event on December 8.
In a first, parties of the INDIA opposition bloc on December 10 submitted a notice to bring a motion in the Rajya Sabha for the removal of Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, accusing him of being biased in his conduct as the chairman of the Upper House. The notice was signed by 60 opposition MPs, including Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh and Naseer Hussain, and submitted to Rajya Sabha Secretary General P C Mody on behalf of the opposition parties such as Congress, RJD, TMC, CPI, CPI-M, JMM, AAP, DMK, and Samajwadi Party.
"An Allahabad High Court judge said there should be a Uniform Civil Code, and the world over feelings of the majority community are respected," the UP chief minister said.
What was a person's crime if he voiced these opinions, he asked.
"Shouldn't there be a Uniform Civil Code in the country? The world over, the system runs as per what the majority community says, and India is saying the discrimination between majority and minority communities should end. They (the Congress) will pressurise, because it is their old habit of strangulating the Constitution and managing the system of the country," Adityanath alleged.
As to the notice to impeach Dhankhar for his alleged partisan role as Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, the BJP leader said the Vice President is doing his duty as presiding officer of the Upper House.
"The Opposition is worried how a farmer's son has reached this position. If someone as a judge and a citizen of the country puts forth truth on a social and cultural platform, he is threatened with impeachment," Adityanath added.
Adityanath, meanwhile, said society and the country need to expose those who want to suppress the truth. Those who spurn India's legacy should be exposed, he said, alleging that the Opposition says that Lord Ram never existed.
During the same event, Adityanath also mentioned that the Sanatan religion never claimed it is great, or it never said its supremacy must be accepted and that it neither controlled anyone with a sword nor did it stake a claim on anyone's land.
Adityanath reportedly said, "You have PM Modi showering flowers on workers who built the Ram Temple in Ayodhya for their hard work, and there will also be rulers who chopped the hands of workers who built the Taj Mahal."
India cannot establish itself as a strong economy by forgetting its legacy, the UP chief minister said.
India's economy stood at 10th or 11th position after 70 years, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi made it the fifth largest economy in 10 years, and in 2027, India will be the third largest economy, the BJP leader said.
Uttar Pradesh is now the country's second-largest economy and is on its way to grow to USD 1 trillion, Adityanath added.
Members of several opposition parties on Friday moved a notice in the Rajya Sabha for the impeachment of Allahabad High Court Judge Shekhar Kumar Yadav over his alleged controversial remarks at a Vishwa Hindu Parishad event on December 8.
The notice for moving the impeachment motion was signed by 55 opposition MPs, including Kapil Sibal, Vivek Tankha, Digvijaya Singh, John Brittas, Manoj Kumar Jha and Saket Gokhale.
The notice mentioned that the speech/lecture delivered by Justice Yadav during an event organised by the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) prima facie showed that he "engaged in hate speech and incitement to communal disharmony in violation of the Constitution of India".
The notice also mentioned that the judge prima facie showed that he targeted minorities and displayed bias and prejudice against them.
It went on to state that Justice Yadav entered into public debate or expressed his views in public on political matters relating to a uniform civil code, in violation of the Restatement of Values of Judicial Life, 1997.
The notice mentioned that the public remarks of the judge were inflammatory and prejudiced and directly targeted minority communities.
It also stated that Justice Yadav in his lecture asserted that "the country would function according to the wishes of the majority in India".
At a VHP function on December 8, Justice Yadav said the main aim of a uniform civil code was to promote social harmony, gender equality and secularism.
A day later, videos of the judge speaking on provocative issues, including the law working according to the majority, were circulated widely on social media, prompting strong reactions from several quarters, including opposition leaders.
The Supreme Court has sought details pertaining to the controversy from the Allahabad High Court.
In a first, parties of the INDIA opposition bloc on Tuesday submitted a notice in the Rajya Sabha to bring a motion for the removal of Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, accusing him of "partisan" conduct as the chairman of the Upper House.
While the motion requires a simple majority to pass, the opposition lacks the necessary numbers in the 243-member House.
The notice, signed by 60 MPs from various parties including Congress, RJD, TMC, CPI, CPI-M, JMM, AAP, DMK, and Samajwadi Party, was submitted by Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh and Naseer Hussain to Rajya Sabha Secretary General P C Mody.
This is the first time a notice for removing the Vice President has been moved in the Rajya Sabha.
A 14-day notice is required, and the motion must be approved by the Deputy Chairman before it is taken up.
Congress General Secretary (In-charge, Communications) Jairam Ramesh said they were pained to move such a notice against the Chairman, but were "forced" to do so after he "crossed all limits" on Monday by allowing several members of the treasury benches to speak against top Congress leadership in the House.
"All parties belonging to the INDIA group have had no option but to formally submit a no-confidence motion against the learned Hon'ble Chairman of the Rajya Sabha for the extremely partisan manner in which he has been conducting the proceedings of the Council of States.
"It has been a very painful decision for the INDIA parties to take, but in the interests of parliamentary democracy they have had to take this step," Ramesh posted on X.