Emergency was imposed due to one family's greed for power: Amit Shah comes down heavily on Congress

Facing an all-out attack from Congress on its handling of the coronavirus crisis and Galwan Valley issue, the BJP on Thursday sharpened its “one dynasty” attack on Congress and raked up the memory of the “dark” days of Emergency on its 45th anniversary to slam Opposition party over its “Emergency mindset”.

Home Minister Amit Shah and PM Narendra Modi tweeted on the occassion, taking strong criticism to the the strict clampdown under the rule of Congres sleader Indira gandhi.

"Exactly 45 years ago, Emergency was imposed on the nation. My salutation to all those who fought for saving democracy and faced persecution then. Nation will never forget their sacrifices," the Prime Minister tweeted.

BJP also took a jibe at the Left parties, who had once fought against the Emergency for “siding with the dynast” and not “democracy”, an attack that comes at the backdrop of the Left having joined issues with Congress in attacking the government on many occasions including on the recent India-China stand off at the LAC.

The ruling party also lauded the RSS's role in the fight against the Emergency and its peaceful protest against the ban on it and violation of civil rights saying the only purpose of RSS's fight was the country's return to democracy.

Going big on the issue, the BJP launched a campaign on social media #Emergency1975HauntsIndia while Home Minister Amit Shah led the charge recalling how, on this day 45 years ago, “one family’s greed for power” led to the imposition of the Emergency.

“Overnight the nation was turned into a prison. The press, courts, free speech...all were trampled over. Atrocities were committed on the poor and downtrodden,” he said.

Latching on to reports of Rahul Gandhi shouting down party colleagues for not being critical enough of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and sacking its spokesperson Sanjay Jha earlier who had penned an article ruing the lack of forum in the Congress for a free discussion, Shah said that as one of India’s major opposition parties, Congress needed to ask itself “why does the Emergency mindset remain? “

“Why are leaders who don’t belong to one dynasty unable to speak up? Why are leaders getting frustrated in Congress? Else, their disconnect with people will keep widening. During the recent CWC meet, both senior and younger members raised a few issues but were shouted down. A party spokesperson was unceremoniously sacked. The sad truth is - leaders are feeling suffocated in Congress,” Shah said.

Also read — Sanjay Jha reminds Congress of tolerance after removal as spokesman

The Home Minister alleged that due to efforts of lakhs of people, the Emergency was lifted and democracy was restored in India but it remained absent in the Congress.

“The interests of one family prevailed over party interests and national interests. This sorry state of affairs thrives in today’s Congress too!,” Shah rubbed in at a time there is a growing talk in Congress of Rahul Gandhi re-emerging in a prominent role in the party nearly a year after he had quit as Congress President, owning responsibility for the party’s debacle in 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

BJP put tweets with pictures of former Prime Minister late Indira Gandhi with remarks recalling how the freedom of the Press was muzzled and the Constitution was trampled upon during the Emergency imposed by her and reminded the Congress how all Opposition leaders then were jailed for criticising the government.

“Emergency 1975 - The unforgivable sin of Congress Before the President’s signature on the declaration papers, top national leaders like JP Narayan, Morarji Desai, L.K.Advani and AB Vajpayee along with hundreds of others had been imprisoned overnight,” the BJP tweeted.

It also said, “ According to a report of the International Human Rights Organization, 1,40,000 people had been arrested without trial during the Congress Prime Minister Smt. Indira Gandhi’s emergency.”

The Emergency attack of the BJP on Congress has come at a time when Rahul Gandhi has launched a relentless attack on Modi, accusing his government of surrendering Indian territory to China and coming up with a jibe of “Surender (surrender) Modi. Congress leaders have frequently cited the “valour” of Indira Gandhi in the creation of Bangladesh, counterpointing it with an attack on Modi’s “56-inches” chest and raising questions on the government’s handling of China affairs.

Read: BJP feels sting of Congress' 'surrender' jibe towards PM Narendra Modi

Under the hashtag #Emergency1975HauntsIndia, BJP came out with audio and visual clips to recall the horror of Emergency under the title “ June 25,1975: The Black Chapter of Emergency” and the “The Tyrants of Emergency”.

“Emergency 1975 – The unforgivable sin of Congress All major democratic institutions like bureaucracy, police, media and judiciary were made to collapse by Congress govt,” the party tweeted.

BJP President J P Nadda said, “India greets all those, who despite having faced acute hardships, opposed the Emergency”

BJP Vice President Vinaya Sahasrabuddhe said, “45 years back it was on this day that the nation was converted into a big jail ! Simply to perpetuate a dynasty, democracy was crippled to such an extent that even so many decades after, India’s democracy rating is lowered because of this blot! Let’s not forget.”

He also said many RSS, ABVP and Jan Sangh workers braved the onslaught of Emergency.

“Several Leftists were also there. But later they sided with those who imposed that draconian rule. Between Dynasty and Democracy, they sided with the former,” he said..

BJP also tweeted a blog written by former Finance Minister late Arun Jaitley “The Emergency Revisited: The circumstances leading to the imposition of Emergency in which the BJP leader had spoken about reasons including “mismanagement of the economy that led to the imposition of Emergency”,

The ruling party, ever since it came to power in 2014, has also ad nauseum referred to the Emergency imposed by then Congress Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1975, to dismiss the credibility of the main Opposition party raising questions on freedom of speech and persecution of the media or social rights activists.

On the 43rd anniversary of Emergency in June 2018, less than a year before 2019 Lok Sabha plans, the BJP readied a massive plan attacking Congress for the episode and honouring those who valiantly fought against Emergency.

The programme was lined up when the Modi government was facing charges from a united Opposition and sections of intelligentsia for having clamped in the country an “undeclared Emergency”. The then BJP government of Maharashtra led by Devendra Fadnavis had instituted monthly pension for political civil rights activists, who fought against the Emergency.

The charge against Congress was led by BJP’s chief troubleshooter Arun Jaitley, who penned a three part series on Facebook highlighting “the tyrannies of Emergency”

BJP’s Emergency attack on Congress had also gone to high decibel levels during the election campaigns especially the last two Lok Sabha polls.