The North News
New Delhi, June 25
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday marked 50 years since the imposition of the Emergency by announcing a new book that revisits his experience during the period of suspended democracy, as Home Minister Amit Shah prepares to officially launch the volume later today.
Titled The Emergency Diaries, the book has been compiled by the BlueKraft Digital Foundation and draws on first-person accounts from Modi’s time as a young pracharak in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) during the 21-month Emergency imposed by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1975. The book also features a foreword by former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda, whom Modi described as a “stalwart of the anti-Emergency movement”.
Prime Minister Modi said the Emergency was a formative moment in his political life. “It reaffirmed the vitality of preserving our democratic framework,” he wrote, adding that it was also a period during which he learned from individuals across the political spectrum.
Criticising the Congress government of the time, Modi said, “No Indian will ever forget the manner in which the spirit of our Constitution was violated, the voice of Parliament muzzled, and attempts were made to control the courts. The 42nd Amendment is a prime example of their shenanigans.” He further alleged that the Emergency targeted the poor and marginalised, saying their dignity was insulted and their freedoms curtailed.
The BJP observes June 25 as Samvidhan Hatya Diwas (Constitution Killing Day), invoking the suppression of fundamental rights, arrests of opposition leaders and journalists, and the censorship of media that defined the Emergency years. Modi called on those who lived through the period — or whose families were affected — to share their stories online, saying it would create awareness among the youth about “those dark days”.
“The people of India from all walks of life united to protect democracy. Their collective struggle forced the then Congress government to restore democracy and hold elections — which they badly lost,” Modi said. The Prime Minister also reiterated his government’s commitment to building a Viksit Bharat (Developed India) and upholding the Constitution, stating, “May we fulfil the dreams of the poor and downtrodden.”
The Emergency Diaries is set to be launched officially today by Home Minister Amit Shah, who is expected to speak on the book’s historical significance and its relevance in contemporary Indian politics.
