Congress govt placed democracy under arrest: PM on 50th anniv of Emergency

NEW DELHI, June 25: As the country commemorated the 50th anniversary of the Emergency, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday asserted it was one of the “darkest chapters” in India’s democratic history and slammed the then Congress government, saying it placed “democracy under arrest.” Top leaders of the BJP and key ally JD(U) led the charge against the Congress with Modi saying no Indian will ever forget the manner in which the spirit of the Constitution was violated during the Emergency. The prime minister also affirmed his government’s commitment to strengthening constitutional principles.
The Union Cabinet at its meeting presided by Prime Minister Modi adopted a resolution against the Emergency and resolved to commemorate and honour the sacrifices of countless individuals who valiantly resisted the measure and its attempt at subversion of the spirit of the Indian Constitution. It also observed a two-minute silence as a mark of tribute to them.
The Congress on its part launched a counter attack on the Modi government, alleging that over the past eleven years, Indian democracy has been under a “systematic and dangerous” five-fold assault that can be best described as “Undeclared Emergency@11”.
Coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the Emergency, a book which highlights Modi’s fight for “the ideals of democracy” was released by Home Minister Amit Shah. ‘The Emergency Diaries – Years that Forged a Leader’ is published by BlueKraft.
In a series of posts on X, Modi said the Emergency was one of the darkest chapters in India’s democratic history.
The values enshrined in the Constitution were set aside, fundamental rights suspended, press freedom extinguished and a large number of political leaders, social workers, students and ordinary citizens jailed, he noted. “It was as if the Congress Government in power at that time placed democracy under arrest,” the prime minister said.
Saluting every person who stood firm in the fight against the Emergency, Modi said these were the people from all over India, from all walks of life, from diverse ideologies who worked closely with each other with one aim: to protect India’s democratic fabric and to preserve the ideals for which freedom fighters devoted their lives. “It was their collective struggle that ensured that the then Congress Government had to restore democracy and call for fresh elections, which they badly lost,” he said.
Meanwhile, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge alleged that an undeclared emergency prevailed in the country, as he accused the BJP of staging a ‘Samvidhan Hatya Diwas’ “drama” to hide its governance failure.
Hitting back at Prime Minister Modi over his jibes at Congress, Kharge said a government which has no tolerance and does not allow fraternity and liberty to prosper has no right to lecture others.
Addressing a press conference at the Congress’ Indira Bhawan, Kharge slammed the BJP-RSS and said those who “played no role in the independence of the country, in framing the Constitution, and rejected Babasaheb Ambedkar’s Constitution” are raking up the Emergency, 50 years after it was imposed. The same people are now talking of saving the Constitution, he added. (PTI)