Union Minister Criticizes Indira Gandhi's Emergency and Rahul's Actions

Hyderabad, June 25 (PTI) – Union Minister Bandi Sanjay Kumar recently criticized former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's imposition of the Emergency, alleging that her grandson, Rahul Gandhi, tarnished India's reputation abroad by claiming that democracy is in peril in the country.

On the 50th anniversary of the Emergency, Sanjay Kumar, Union Minister of State for Home, described the Emergency as a grim chapter in the post-Independence history of India. The Emergency was enacted on this very day in 1975 by Indira Gandhi's government.

During that period, democracy was stifed, dissenting voices were suppressed, opposition leaders were incarcerated, and membership of opposition MPs who raised concerns was revoked by the then Congress regime, Sanjay Kumar asserted.

In the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh, numerous ABVP and Jan Sangh leaders, including V Rama Rao, Jupudi Yagna Narayana, P V Chalapati Rao, former Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, and current Tripura Governor N Indrasena Reddy, were detained for opposing the Emergency, he recounted.

The Congress party exploited Article 356, which pertains to the failure of constitutional machinery in a state, 99 times to overthrow opposition-led state governments, he claimed.

According to Sanjay Kumar, the citizens of India taught Congress a lesson when it attempted to gain votes in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections by spreading falsehoods that the BJP intended to alter the Constitution and eliminate reservations. Despite this, there seems to be no shift in the mindset of Congress leaders, he alleged.

While Indira Gandhi sought to maintain her power by enforcing the Emergency, her grandson and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, in pursuit of power, harmed India's esteem by declaring on international platforms that democracy is endangered in India, Sanjay Kumar alleged.