Fifty years ago, tryst with fear
Fifty years ago, this day, India received a rude jolt when the Union government declared a national Emergency, that led to a suspension of constitutional rights, including civil liberties, and imposed authoritarian rule on the country. The 21 months that followed were a deeply lacerating time for a people who were building a republic on the foundations of the legacy of the national movement and the Constitution that gave legal sanctity to its ideals. Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, singed by the Allahabad High Court verdict that convicted her of electoral malpractices, declared her election null and void, and disqualified her from holding elected office for six years, chose the shroud of the Emergency to stay in office. A pliant President, Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, did not object and the country slipped into a long night. Power supply to media offices was cut that night so that newspapers could not report the events underway. Politicians from Opposition parties, trade union leaders, and Sarvodoya leader Jayaprakash Narayan (JP), were arrested that night and organisations including the RSS, Ananda Marga, and Jamaat-e-Islami banned. A few such as Socialist Party chairman George Fernandes went underground to organise a pushback. An estimated 35,000 people were arrested under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act and 76,000 people were held under the Defence of India Act and Rules during the Emergency months. The government had its way with the Emergency because the institutions expected to provide the checks and balances failed to challenge the subversion of the Constitution. (HT Photo)
The government had its way with the Emergency because the institutions expected to provide the checks and balances failed to challenge the subversion of the Constitution. Like the President's office, the Supreme Court, except one judge, Justice HR Khanna, cowed before an imperial prime minister and her coterie that unleashed a regime of fear by weaponising legal provisions, suppressing free speech, and imprisoning the regime's opponents. Well-intentioned public policies such as population control measures to anti-corruption and black marketeering provisions turned into symbols of State repression and instruments to jail people. The administration used its publicity arms to claim that all was well with the nation and its citizens. JP, ailing and in jail, was the moral hand that guided the resistance to the Emergency. The political dynamic unleashed by Indira Gandhi saw a coming together of the Opposition parties, and even dissenters within the Congress party, which led to her defeat in 1977.
The Emergency marked a rupture in independent India's history. Political India was never the same thereafter, but the restoration of democracy following the massive mandate for the Janata Party was a redemptive action that instilled faith in the power of vote among citizens. The Emergency tested India's tryst with democracy; unlike most other post-colonial nations, it survived the fire, with scars.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
India Gazette
19 minutes ago
- India Gazette
"He worked on ground as sadhu, sardarji, hippie..." Amit Shah shares instances of PM Modi's struggle during Emergency
New Delhi [India], June 25 (ANI): Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday, while speaking about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's new book 'The Emergency Diaries - Years that Forged a Leader', shared instances of PM Modi's covert operations while disguising himself as 'sadhu, sardar, hippie incense stick seller and newspaper vendor' in his struggle against the emergency during 1975 Amit Shah recalled PM Modi's struggle during the emergency, noting that the PM visited the Maintenance of Internal Security Act arrestees and arranged for their medical treatment. Amit Shah also shared that the PM helped in the distribution of the secret newspapers resisting the emergency. 'PM Modi's book 'The Emergency Diaries: Year that forged our leaders', was launched. It is about PM Modi, a young worker who participated in the movement for 19 months. PM Modi visited MISA arrestees' homes and arranged their medical treatment. A lot of secret newspapers used to be published at that time,' Amit Shah said. 'PM Modi distributed those newspapers among markets, students and women and led a struggle in Gujarat at the age of 24-25... The entire story is in this book, PM Modi worked on the ground as a Sadhu, Sardarji, hippie, incense stick seller or a newspaper vendor to make the other work possible,' Amit Shah added. Union Home Minister Amit Shah called PM Modi's triumph over Congress in last 2014 Lok Sabha election a 'divine justice' crediting him of 'uprooting the reason for which emergency was imposed; Dynasty politics.' 'Look at how the divine justice takes place. A 25-year-old boy (PM Modi) opposed Indira Gandhi's dictatorship. Today, that same person, in 2014, uprooted the reason for which the emergency was imposed: Dynasty Politics,' Amit Shah said. 'The youth who struggled against the dictatorship is now strengthening the roots of democracy in this country,' he added. 'The Emergency Diaries - Years that Forged a Leader' book published by BlueKraft is based on first-person anecdotes from associates who worked with young Modi, and using other archival material, the book is a first of its kind that creates new scholarship on the formative years of a young man who would give it his all in the fight against tyranny. Earlier, the Prime Minister took to X to write a series of posts. ''The Emergency Diaries' chronicles my journey during the Emergency years. It brought back many memories from that time. I call upon all those who remember those dark days of the Emergency or those whose families suffered during that time to share their experiences on social media. It will create awareness among the youth of the shameful time from 1975 to 1977.' PM Modi posted on X. He recalled how, for a young RSS Pracharak, the anti-Emergency movement was a learning experience. 'It reaffirmed the vitality of preserving our democratic framework. At the same time, I got to learn so much from people across the political spectrum. I am glad that BlueKraft Digital Foundation has compiled some of those experiences in the form of a book, whose foreword has been penned by Shri HD Deve Gowda Ji, himself a stalwart of the anti-Emergency movement,' PM Modi said. (ANI)
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
27 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Constitution is supreme, all three wings of democracy work under it: CJI
Chief Justice of India B R Gavai on Wednesday said the Constitution of India is supreme, and all three wings of our democracy work under the Constitution. While some people say that Parliament is supreme, in his opinion the Constitution is paramount, he said. Justice Gavai, who took oath as the 52nd CJI last month, was speaking at his felicitation in Amravati city of eastern Maharashtra, his hometown. There is always a discussion as to which wing of democracy -- the executive, legislature or the judiciary -- is supreme, he said. "While many say and believe that Parliament is supreme, according to me, it is the Constitution of India that is supreme. All three wings of the democracy work under the Constitution," he said. Referring to a judgment passed by the Apex court on the foundation of the 'Basic Structure' doctrine, CJI Gavai said Parliament has the power to amend, but it can not alter the basic structure of the Constitution. A judge does not become independent just by passing orders against the government, he further said. "A judge should always remember that we have a duty, and we are custodians of the rights of citizens and constitutional values and principles. We don't just have power, but a duty is cast upon us," he said. A judge should not be guided by what people will say or feel about their judgment, the CJI further said. "We have to think independently. What people will say cannot become a part of our decision-making process," he said. The CJI asserted that he always let his judgments and work speak, and always stood by the fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution. During his speech, the chief justice cited a few of his judgements. Referring to his judgment against "bulldozer justice", he said the right to shelter is supreme. CJI Gavai also reminisced about his childhood days on this occasion. While he wanted to be an architect, his father wished that he become a lawyer, he said. "My father had wanted to become a lawyer but was unable to become one, as at the time he was arrested for being part of the freedom movement," Gavai said.
Time of India
30 minutes ago
- Time of India
JMM, BJP trade barbs over Emergency days
1 2 3 Ranchi: As the nation marked the 50th year of the Emergency on Wednesday, both ruling and opposition camps in Jharkhand took potshots at each other with claims and counter-claims. While BJP held several programmes to observe the day and apprise people about the "black day", ruling JMM maintained that the nation has been going through an "undeclared emergency" since 2014. Addressing the media, JMM's central general secretary Supriyo Bhattacharya said, "We all know what happened 50 years ago when the Emergency was clamped on this day. Since then, the country has seen and risen over various odds and emerged stronger. However, what the nation needs to ponder now is how it has been thrust into an undeclared emergency since the Narendra Modi govt came to power in 2014." Citing a slew of incidents, he said, "On Nov 8, 2016, at 8 pm, economic emergency was imposed in the country in the form of demonetisation, which had a spiralling effect on the people, leading to deaths and job losses among others. Will the PM and his party answer what day should be observed for their misadventures? They said demonetisation will end terrorism, corruption and so on. Why is the country still facing terror strikes?" Bhattacharya also claimed that the Covid-19 pandemic, three farm laws and mass suspension of opposition leaders from Parliament over the years were just examples of the BJP-led NDA's attempts to choke voices of dissent. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Perdagangkan CFD Emas dengan Broker Tepercaya IC Markets Mendaftar Undo BJP's organisational secretary Karmveer Singh, however, said, "They have no right to speak. This country is the mother of democracy and no one can ever succeed in crushing it. The people of India know how to teach a lesson to those who try to suppress them," he added.
