On SC’s ‘caged parrot’ remark for CBI, V-P Jagdeep Dhankhar rebukes with ‘work under rule of law’ comment

Following a recent remark by the Supreme Court on the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Monday said that an observation can "dispirit" them.

At an event in Mumbai, Dhankhar said that one has to be "extremely conscious" about the country's institutions which are robust and are working independently under the rule of law with suitable checks and balances.

On Friday, a Supreme Court judge said that CBI must be above board and it should dispel the notion of it being a "caged parrot".

The judge, Ujjal Bhuyan, also said that Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's arrest in the excise policy case was unjustified.

Dhankhar on Monday said that all organs of the State have a common objective that the common man should get all the rights and India should flourish and prosper.

"They need to work in tandem and togetherness to nurture and blossom democratic values and further Constitutional ideals... Let these sacred platforms -- the Legislature, the Executive and the Judiciary -- not be trigger points of political inflammatory debate that is detrimental to established institutions that serve the nation well in the challenging and daunting environment," he said.

By institutions, he said he meant the Election Commission and investigative agencies.

Dhankhar said that these bodies perform under "tight situations" and such observations can "despirit" them.

"It can set a political debate afloat and trigger a narrative. We have to be extremely conscious about our Institutions. They are robust, they are working independently under rule of law and there are suitable checks and balances," Dhankhar said.

Kejriwal was on Friday released on bail from jail. He later announced that he would be resigning from his post and call for early elections. Kejriwal is set to meet Delhi Lt Governor VK Saxena on Tuesday and is likely to tender his resignation.