Formr vice president Jagdeep Dhankhar. File | Photo Credit: Neither
Former Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar has only traveled abroad only four times for bilateral visits in his 35 -month term, and his office often complained to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) over protocol issues.
The differences of his tasks Mea were among the reasons for mismatch between the former vice president and the government and the source of Mr. Dhankhar, who felt his role, especially in foreign policy issues, was less than his predecessors.
According to the Mea website, four visits to Mr. Dhankhar two, which came shortly after taking over the Vice President in August 2022, and then narrowed the frequency of these visits. For comparison, its immediate predecessors Venkaiah Naidu had 13 foreign tours during August 2017-2022 and Hamid Ansari represented India for 28 tours abroad during his ten-year period in 2007–2017.
Mr. Dhankhar went to Cambodia (11-13 November 2022), Qatar (20-21 November 2022), Great Britain (5th-6th, 2023) and Iran (May 2024). This year it was not scheduled for any tours, although sources said that Mea had proposed two visits abroad, in February and June, which were rejected for health reasons.
According to sources, Mr. Dhankhar complained about what he saw as several violations of a protocol for several opposition leaders in the last few months. One point in the claim was that the vice -chairman believed that he had received fewer visits from foreign dignitaries than in the past.
The Vice President’s office was reportedly unfortunate during his visit to Tehran, where he represented India at the funeral of President Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter accident. Officials of the Iranian Government protocol were apparently overloaded because more than 40 ranks at a high level participated in the ceremonies, and the sources said that Mr. Dhankhar was restless with a measure in the Tehran Parssic Hotel Azadi during his all -day trip.
The absence of Mr. Dhankhar from the official banquet during the US Vice President JD Vance in April this year also increased several eyebrows. 21st April, when Mr. Vance landed in Delhi, Mr. Dhankhar was on board the flight to Jaipur and returned to the capital only after Mr. Vance left. However, the officials stated in exchanges that the Vice President’s Office was not informed in advance of the US Vice President’s program, nor was included in the program. At that time, the Hindu announced that the meeting between these two vice -chairmen was not planned because the officials said that the protocol is not ordered due to differences in the structure of Indian and US government.
The resources in the office of the Vice -President said Mr. Dhankhar had made his diplomatic tasks to the full extent that he was obliged, and pointed out where he felt there were spaces. On May 19, he spoke to the event in Delhi, referred to the delay of the protocol in the reception line for the main judge Bravai and said, “I am also suffering”. He pointed out that his photographs were not held in government authorities alongside the positions of the President and Prime Minister, as he said they should be. “As soon as I demituate the office, I will make sure my successor will have a photo,” he said, adding that when such complaints were made, they were not “personal but in position”.
Published – 23 July 2025 21:56
