B JP, Cong spar on 45th Emergency anniversary

Union home minister targets Cong over ‘one-family’ rule, latter attacks PM Narendra Modi and Shah of hijacking their party

NEW DELHI: On the 45th anniversary of Emergency on Thursday, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress traded accusations about lack of democracy in their respective political parties.

While Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted that the sacrifice made by the people who fought against the imposition of Emergency will never be forgotten, union home minister Amit Shah attacked the Congress, critiqued the concentration of power in “one family”, and said that the opposition party should ask why the “Emergency mindset” continues.

The Congress, in turn, attacked Modi and Shah for “hijacking” the BJP, sidelining elder leaders, centralising all power, and leaving no space for others to express their views.

On June 25, 1975, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had imposed the Emergency, which saw a suspension of fundamental rights, detention of political leaders, dismissal of a range of state governments, and significant constitutional changes. She announced elections two years later, which led to the defeat of the Congress for the first time in postIndependence India and the installation of the Janata Partyled government. The Bharatiya Jana Sangh, the political predecessor of the BJP, was a part of the umbrella Janata formation.

In a series of tweets, Shah made a pointed reference to Tuesday’s Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting, where former union minister RPN Singh was reported to have called for restraint against direct attacks on PM Modi. Singh, who is the party in-charge of Jharkhand affairs, has argued that the Congress leaders should rather criticise the government’s policies and raise people-centric issues.

However, he was countered by other leaders, including Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who praised former Congress president Rahul Gandhi for taking on Modi. For his part, Rahul Gandhi said he will continue to attack the Prime Minister, claiming that “it is Modi alone who formulates policies and takes all decisions” in the present government.

Shah took a dig at the Congress leadership and the Gandhi family without naming it.

“During the recent CWC meet, senior members in younger members raised a few issues. But, they were shouted down. A party spokesperson was unceremoniously sacked. The sad truth is — leaders are feeling suffocated in Congress”, he tweeted and attacked a link to a media report about the proceedings at the CWC. Shah’s comment was in reference to the removal of Sanjay Jha as the party’s spokesperson, after he criticised the party’s functioning in an opinion piece. In a separate tweet, Shah said,

“As one of India’s opposition parties, Congress needs to ask itself: why does the emergency mindset remain? Why are the leaders who don’t belong to one dynasty unable to speak up? Why are leaders getting frustrated in Congress? Else, the disconnect with the people will keep widening.”

While the Congress vehemently denied these allegations, Shah pinned the blame for the imposition on Emergency on the Gandhi family, without naming names. He said, “On this day 45 years ago, one family’s greed for power led to the imposition of the Emergency and turned the nation in to a prison...”.

Shah’s comments drew a sharp response from the Congress leaders.

Rajasthan chief minister and veteran Congress leader Ashok Gehlot hit back at Shah. “I am not surprised to see that out of all opposition parties Mr Modi and Amit Shah are worried only about Congress. Their insecurities and fear is evident because everyone knows including Shah that only Congress under the leadership of Soniaji and Rahulji have the courage and strength to take on the tyranny of the current regime,” he said.

“It is shocking that apart from 3/4 ministers, public does not even know who all are there in Modi’s cabinet.”

Congress’ chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala tweeted, “And so spoke those, who occupied present positions by forcibly retiring & humiliating every patriarch & colleague who built them. And the list is long .... Sh. L.K.Advani, Sh. M.M.Joshi, Sh. Keshubhai Patel, Sh. Kalraj Mishra, Smt. Sushma Swaraj, Sh. Haren Pandya, Sh. Sanjay Joshi.”

ON JUNE 25, 1975, THE THEN PRIME MINISTER INDIRA GANDHI HAD IMPOSED THE EMERGENCY, WHICH SAW A SUSPENSION OF FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS, DETENTION OF LEADERS AND CONSTITUTIONAL CHANGES