India remembered the Emergency as a routine annual observance Monday, with the BJP advertising the ills of the 1975 defensive step by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. On the other hand, is also a small segment of the population that feels it was the right prescription for the ills of the time. The 21 months that followed were, by popular perception, a dark era in Independent India’s history of democracy. Public freedom was curtailed, many Opposition politicians were jailed, and curbs imposed on the media with a rare flourish. But through it all, Indians survived and the nation carried forward. At the time every self respecting Indian opposed the alleged draconian measures, which also included forced clearance of slums in Delhi to make way for public space and herding the poor for family planning – Nasbandi – operations, and the like at the extreme end. Those, no doubt, were grim experiences.
Today, considering the chaotic situations in the country, there are those who feel occasional clamping of Emergency would perhaps help restore a semblance of order. Indira Gandhi herself survived the odds and returned to power, a proof that the Indian society had not written her off completely or to view her
controversial decision with much disdain. The scene in India today is one of licentiousness, spiraling corruption in the bureaucracy and politics, and projects failing to materialize due to pressures
being exerted by organized groups. Trains do not start or reach in time, while the hallmark of the Emergency was punctuality. Today, there is no guarantee that even flights will take off on time even when the sky is clear.
The freedom that democracy guarantees is the freedom to rebel and resist. It has its advantages as this acts as a safety valve to let out societal pressure. No doubt, safeguarding the tenets of democracy is a matter of priority for every Indian. It is nobody’s case that there should be more restraint on individual
freedom and expression as was seen during the Emergency. The rule of law must be upheld. But, it is also imperative that we as a society conduct ourselves in more orderly ways, and with a greater sense of
responsibility, so that the need for Emergency-like situations does not arise in future.
