The BJP on Monday said it will launch a nationwide programme on the 1975 Emergency to “expose” the Congress’ “authoritarianism” and its disregard for the Constitution.
BJP president JP Nadda will address the main event, titled “Dark Days of Democracy”, at its headquarters on Tuesday, the party’s chief spokesperson Anil Baluni said in a statement.
According to Article 352 of the Constitution, the president can proclaim an Emergency if there is a grave threat to the security of the country — whether by war or external aggression or armed rebellion.
Baluni said, “The Emergency stands as an unforgettable dark chapter in India’s robust democracy. The then-prime minister Indira Gandhi imposed Emergency on the nation on June 25, 1975, marking a severe curtailment of democratic freedoms.”
Over the next 21 months, the then-Congress government held the country’s democracy and the Constitution “captive, unleashing countless atrocities on the people, media and opposition leaders”, he said.