During Emergency, ‘one individual’ held liberty to ‘ransom’, says Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar
Last month, the government declared that June 25, the day on which Emergency was imposed in 1975, will now be observed as ‘Samvidhaan Hatya Diwas.’
‘One individual’ held citizens' liberty to ‘ransom’ during the 21-month Emergency, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar remarked on Saturday.
Also, the Vice President, who was speaking in Jodhpur at the Platinum Jubilee celebrations of the high court of Rajasthan, his home state, hailed the high court for being in an ‘illustrious list' of high courts.
“During Emergency, liberty was held to ransom by one individual,” Dhankhar said.
The Emergency, imposed by then-prime minister Indira Gandhi of the Congress party, was in place from June 25, 1975 to March 21, 1977. Gandhi put the country under emergency rule due to ‘internal and external threats.’
VP Dhankhar continued: “Those arrested without any fault, were barred from seeking any judicial help. The apex court overturned the verdicts of nine high courts, that had ruled in favour of the victims. This court (Rajasthan HC) was in that illustrated list of nine high courts. I am indeed proud to be a part of this institution!”
The Vice President further stated that during the Emergency, the Supreme Court had said two things: ‘No one can move to any court for the enforcement of their rights as long as the Emergency lasts; and, the Emergency can last as long as the government wishes.’
As the ex-officio Chair of the Rajya Sabha, Dhankhar has butted heads with the Congress-led opposition INDIA bloc, which has repeatedly accused the Vice President of ‘favouring’ the BJP-led ruling NDA.
Last month, the government announced that June 25 will now be observed annually as ‘Samvidhaan Hatya Diwas’ (Constitution Murder Day) to mark the imposition of Emergency.
During the recent Lok Sabha elections, the INDIA group claimed to voters that if re-elected, the BJP would ‘do away’ with the Constitution. This was in response to prime minister Narendra Modi's ‘400 paar’ (over 400 seats) call.