The Vice President of India, Jagdeep Dhankhar, has said that political climate in the country is a challenge as much as climate change.

Speaking after inaugurating the new queue complex – Shri Sanidhya — at Shree Kshetra Dharmasthala in Dakshina Kannada district on Tuesday, he said there is now an urgent need in the country to ensure, to think, to reflect on deep political divisiveness.

“Political climate in the country is a challenge as much as climate change. We have to work to harmonise it. We cannot ignore our long-term gains, commitment to nationalism, for short-term gains. The political temperature in the country needs to be moderated by rational minds. All our stance has to be dictated and pivoted firmly by one consideration, goodness of the nation,” he said.

Mentioning that he is a worried person, Dhankhar said people elect their representatives to parliament and legislatures. It is bounded duty of public representatives to voice concerns of the people.

They must offer solutions. They must work to realise aspirations of the people. But if they engage in disruption, then things go wrong. Things go wrong for a very difficult situation because there can be no vacuum in society, he said.

If parliamentarians and representatives of the people will not engage in their activity, the vacuum will be filled. People will agitate on the streets. People go in chaotic mode because they have to find expression of their problems. They have to look for their solutions, he said.

Urging the people to wake up, he said: “We are cliffhanging as a parliamentary institution. We are very close to eclipsing. We are getting into irrelevant mode. Time for the temples of democracy to be vibrant for expression of views, healthy dialogue, consensual approach that was reflected by constituent assembly in evolution of our constitution.”

Forces against India, forces inimical to the country’s interests, forces that do not think well of the country are conversing in one form or the other. They want to destabilise Indian institutions. “They want to taint and tarnish our constitutional positions. They want to run down our progress history. We must neutralise these forces with total command and that can be done when there is eternal vigilance. Eternal vigilance is the price of freedom we have to pay,” he said.

Stating that in a country like India, people challenge law enforcing authorities and public order, he said these people, these nefarious elements must be dealt in an exemplary manner. They must be brought to law, their cases must be fast-tracked.

This country of 1.4 billion cannot suffer this kind of public nuisance, destruction of public property. The world is appreciating Indian trains. “One after the other we are having trains and there are some people who stone it. They are rogue elements of society. They should not have our respect. They must be singled out, pinpointed, and strongly dealt with,” he said.

VIP culture

Stressing the need to re-instil the idea of equality in religious institutions, he said: “When precedence is accorded when priority is given to someone, when we label it as VVIP or VIP, this is belittling the concept of equality. VIP culture is an aberration, it is an incursion when viewed on the anvil of equality. It should have no place in society, much less in religious places.”

The very idea of VIP darshan militates against divinity. It should be dispensed with, he added.