Kolkata: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar attacked the Gandhi family on June 27 for the Emergency period during the tenure of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. He said that it happened because “a single family considered itself bigger than the nation.”
Jaishankar was speaking at the inaugural event of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha’s Mock Parliament, marking 50 years since the Emergency. There, he said, “All this happened because of one family. There’s a movie titled ‘Kissa Kursi Ka’, and these three words aptly tell the reason behind the imposition of the Emergency. When a family is considered above the nation, things like the Emergency take place.” He added, “The one lesson that Emergency taught us is – never take freedom for granted.”
He said the Emergency was implemented to break India’s morale and society, and it affected several people who were not even in politics. Jaishankar noted, “Those who were in politics were well aware that doing politics meant an inevitable arrest, and those who were arrested were unaware if and when they would be released.”
Jaishankar also stated that after its victory in the 1971 Lok Sabha elections, the Congress government became unpopular as corruption and inflation increased simultaneously. He said, “People were angry. Agitations were going on in Gujarat and Bihar… People were raising questions on the business of the then ‘yuvraj’. Based on the verdict of the Allahabad High Court, the then Prime Minister was charged with two cases- corrupt practices and misuse of government machinery.”
He also took a dig at Rahul Gandhi and said, “Political parties also have their own DNA. And the DNA of this party has never shown regret for the Emergency or admitted that the decisions taken were wrong.”
