Reaffirming the democratic ethos enshrined in the Constitution, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Tuesday said that “the supreme power lies with the people of India”, as he addressed students and faculty during the ‘Kartavyam’ event organized by the University of Delhi.

Speaking passionately about constitutional values and the power of electoral democracy, Dhankhar said, “The Constitution is encapsulated, its essence, its worth, its nectar in the Preamble. And what does it say? 'We the people of India' — the supreme power is with them, no one is above the people of India." He emphasized that citizens delegate their authority to public representatives, who are “severely accountable on occasions, through elections.”

Recalling historical precedence, the Vice President added, “A Prime Minister who imposed Emergency was held accountable in 1977 and therefore let there be no doubt about it. Constitution is for the people and its repository of safeguarding it is that of elected representatives.”

Taking aim at recent remarks suggesting that constitutional posts could be merely "ceremonial or ornamental," Dhankhar called such views "inconceivably intriguing."
“Nothing can be farther from the truth. According to me, a citizen is supreme because a nation and democracy are built by citizens. The soul of democracy resides and pulsates in every citizen,” he asserted.