Kuldip Nayar's son recalls Emergency: ‘My father was held to scare the press… He paid the price for honesty'
Kuldip Nayar, who passed away in 2018, was one of the country's renowned journalists and human rights activists. He fought fiercely for press freedom during the Emergency imposed by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi during 1975-77, when fundamental rights, including free speech, were subverted. Nayar was then an editor with The Indian Express. He was also jailed under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) for leading a protest against the excesses of the administration.
In an interview with The Indian Express, Nayar's son Rajiv Nayar, a senior advocate, recalls the night of his father's arrest, shining light on his work. Excerpts:
What happened during the night of Kuldip Nayar's arrest? Were you aware that your father was going to be put behind bars?
My father knew from some sources that he was going to be arrested. He did not know the exact date, but he knew it was going to happen soon. We were at Malcha Marg (in Delhi) at that time and we saw some people in plain clothes deputed outside our house… We knew that it was imminent.
Could you talk about your father's work during the Emergency?
Even when he was released, he kept on writing articles criticising the government. He was arrested only to make an example to scare the press. Nobody else wrote like he was writing. He paid the price for being honest and independent.
Why do you think the government released Kuldip Nayar from jail before the high court's judgment came?
When the judgment was reserved and the government got an idea that the judgment is going against them, they tried to make it infructuous by saying that they had already released him. The judgment was still pronounced. That is why the judges paid the price – the junior judge was demoted and the senior judge was transferred.
What happened to all the high court judges who gave rulings against the government during the Emergency?
Most of them were transferred from one state to another.
How was your father's experience in jail?
He got used to it, I think. I used to take food for him whenever I used to meet him. He was not harassed at all, and had a very good time. In fact, he also made a lot of friends. But, of course, the comfort and luxury of home was missing. My grandfather (who was also arrested during the Emergency) and my father were in the jail at the same time for one night. He used to always recall that this surprised him a lot.
Your father broke the news in January 1977 that the government was going to call fresh elections…
I think he got the tip from a very senior Congress leader. I am not entirely sure, but this is what I was told.
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