Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut has claimed in a new edition of his prison memoirs that Jagdeep Dhankar was pressured to resign from the post of Vice President by the Narendra Modi government using the threat of central investigative agencies because the NDA regime did not like his “independent decisions”.
Dhankar resigned suddenly in July 2025, due to health concerns.
In his chapter, Raut claimed that “ED prepared a file against Dhankhar in connection with his real estate deals and funds transferred to offshore accounts which were used when the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was angered by Dhankhar’s independent political decisions.”
Raut has added four chapters to the English version of his book “Unlikely Paradise,” which was originally released last year. He writes about “the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) actions that earned the BJP the nickname ‘shakha’, how it was used by the central government against democratic institutions and positions like the Election Commission of India (ECI), and the pressure put on Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar to resign.”
Two of the four chapters are centered around the CEO and related cases: ‘The Supreme Court v. The CEO’ and ‘At the Gates of the European Commission and the Vice President’s House’. The book was launched in Delhi on Monday by AAP president and former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and former Union minister Kapil Sibal, among others.
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He wrote: “Rumors have spread that Dhankar and his wife have sold their residence in Jaipur and moved part of the proceeds abroad. The CEO, who closely follows their activities, has allegedly prepared a dossier to bring charges against the former vice president, along with other investigative agencies. When whispers emerged about Dhankar’s independent political moves against the Modi government, the CEO reportedly presented him with that dossier, pressuring him to resign. His initial refusal to comply led to intense scrutiny. It leaves him visibly uncomfortable.”
Raut even claimed that the CEO’s influence extends to monitoring the appointments and work of judges and even the President of India.
Responding to the allegations, Navnath Bhan, chief spokesperson of the BJP in Maharashtra, said: “Just something written in a book does not make it true. Such serious allegations require strong evidence, official documents, or clear statements from the individuals concerned. Making such accusations against people who have served in high constitutional positions is an attempt to raise doubts about the country’s institutions.”
Dhankhar has mostly stayed away from the issue, only recently saying that he did not actually resign due to “health problems.”
He did not delve into the actual reason for his resignation at that time. “I just said that I am prioritizing my health, which everyone should do,” he said in Sadulpur in Rajasthan’s Churu district on February 26, 2026.
in Just days after Dhankar’s resignation, a political buzz in Delhi said that his move to initiate the impeachment process of Justice Yashwant Varma on the Opposition-led motion could be a reason for the government’s dissatisfaction with him. He reportedly asked the opposition leaders to file notice of the dismissal of Justice Varma in the Rajya Sabha, which he presides over as deputy chairman, even when the government wanted to file the notice only in the Lok Sabha. A former Delhi High Court judge faces deportation after an undisclosed sum of money was found at his residence in March 2025.
Read also | Why did Jagdeep Dhankhar resign? Buzz links to an Oppn-sponsored notice against the judge
No NDA MP signed the opposition-sponsored notice in the Rajya Sabha, apparently because they had no idea such a notice was being prepared, HT reported at the time.
When Dhankar announced that he had received this proposal, it derailed the government’s plan to remove Justice Varma on its own initiative. “The government wanted to pass the impeachment motion first in the Lok Sabha. It could have been touted as a success for the government and send a clear message to the judiciary. But Dhankar stole the limelight,” a Lok Sabha official told HT in July.
An angry Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has decided that party president and Rajya Sabha leader JP Nadda and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju will not attend the Dhankar-led Business Advisory Committee meeting.
Dhankhar seems to have decided it’s time to leave. “It takes a lot of strength to resign,” one of his aides told HT, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Besides Justice Varma, there were other key issues as well, according to opposition leaders.
Dhankar had spoken of the “pressures” of his work and how he “went out of his way” to meet the demands of the ruling establishment. He has also faced a no-confidence motion from the Congress-led opposition over alleged bias.
