THE NEWS DOSE DESK
Delhi/Chandigarh,June 29,UPDATED:3.10PM
In his monthly Mann Ki Baat broadcast on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a scathing critique of the 1975 Emergency, describing it as a dark chapter in India’s democratic history and a “murder of the Constitution.” Without naming the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi or the Congress Party, Modi said the 21-month period between 1975 and 1977 witnessed widespread atrocities, mass arrests, and the brutal silencing of dissent.
Calling for eternal remembrance of the Emergency, Modi said the episode should serve as a civic lesson in vigilance and constitutional safeguarding. “Those who imposed the Emergency made the judiciary a puppet and crushed freedom of expression,” he said. He added that thousands were jailed, students were harassed, and even leaders like George Fernandes were shackled, solely for speaking the truth.
To drive home the point, Modi played archival clips of prominent anti-Emergency voices, including Morarji Desai, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and Jagjivan Ram, underscoring the courage it took to stand up against authoritarian rule. “The Emergency was not just a political event—it was a brutal assault on India’s democratic ethos. People were tortured, silenced, and stripped of their rights. But they did not bow. The Constitution eventually triumphed,” he asserted.
The Prime Minister recalled that June 25, the day the Emergency was imposed in 1975, has recently been observed as ‘Samvidhan Hatya Diwas’ (Constitution Killing Day) by many across the country. He stressed the importance of remembering the sacrifices of those who resisted tyranny so that “we remain vigilant and never allow democracy to be compromised again.”
Political Undertone
Modi’s remarks come amid a bitter war of words between the BJP and the opposition, many of whom have alleged that India is currently witnessing an “undeclared Emergency” under the Modi government—a charge the BJP vehemently denies. By evoking the 1975 Emergency, Modi sought to draw a sharp contrast between constitutional subversion of the past and his own government’s asserted commitment to democracy.
