Modi govt declares June 25 as ’Samvidhaan Hatya Diwas’ to mark 1975 Emergency

The Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance government declared June 25 as “Samvidhaan Hatya Diwas (संजिधान हत्या दििस)”. In a gazette notification on Friday, the Ministry of Home Affairs noted that the Emergency was declared on June 25, 1975, by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

On June 25, 1975, Indira Gandhi, the then Prime Minister and Congress leader, imposed a national Emergency. The period of Emergency lasted for around 21 months, starting from midnight of June 25, 1975, until its withdrawal on March 21, 1977.

PM Modi said the observance of 'Samvidhaan Hatya Diwas' will serve as a "reminder of what happens when the Constitution of India was trampled over".

The prime minister said it is also a day to pay homage to each and every person who suffered due to the excesses of the Emergency, "a Congress unleashed dark phase of Indian history".

The ministry notification said the Centre decided to observe June 25 every year as ‘Samvidhaan Hatya Diwas’ to "pay tribute to all those who suffered and fought against the gross abuse of power during the period of Emergency and to recommit the people of India to not support in any manner such gross abuse of power, in future."

It added that the people of India have abiding faith in the Constitution and the power of its resilient democracy.

Why June 25 will be observed as Samvidhaan Hatya Diwas

Union Home Minister Amit Shah shared the notification on X and said, "This day will commemorate the massive contributions of all those who endured the inhuman pains of the 1975 Emergency."

While attacking the Congress, he said the observance of 'Samvidhaan Hatya Diwas' will help keep the eternal flame of individual freedom and the defence of our democracy alive in every Indian, “thus preventing dictatorial forces like the Congress from repeating those horrors”.

Amit Shah said in a series of posts on X that on June 25, 1975, "the then PM Indira Gandhi, in a brazen display of a dictatorial mindset, strangled the soul of our democracy by imposing the Emergency on the nation".

"Lakhs of people were thrown behind bars for no fault of their own, and the voice of the media was silenced," the home minister said.

Shah said the decision made by the Narendra Modi-led government is “intended to honour the spirit of millions who struggled to revive democracy despite facing inexplicable persecution at the hands of an oppressive government”.

Congress targets Centre

Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh on Friday targeted "non-biological" PM Modi hours after the Government of India announced that June 25 will be remembered annually as "Constitution Murder Day" in remembrance of the Emergency declared by the Indira Gandhi government in 1975.

In a series of tweets on X, Jairm Ramesh said, “Yet another headline grabbing exercise in hypocrisy by the non-biological PM who had imposed an undeclared Emergency for ten long years before the people of India handed him a decisive personal, political, and moral defeat on June 4, 2024 - which will go down in history as ModiMukti Diwas.”

Showdown in Parliament earlier

In the recently concluded Parliament session, Speaker Om Birla condemned the Emergency period, and the House observed a two-minute silence in memory of those who lost their lives during that time.

"This House strongly condemns the decision to impose Emergency in 1975. Along with this, we appreciate the determination of all those people who opposed the Emergency, fought and fulfilled the responsibility of protecting the democracy of India. 25th June 1975 will always be known as a black chapter in the history of India," Birla had said.

"On this day, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi imposed an Emergency in the country and attacked the Constitution made by Baba Saheb Ambedkar. India is known all over the world as the mother of democracy. Democratic values and debate have always been supported in India. Democratic values have always been protected, they have always been encouraged. Dictatorship was imposed on such an India by Indira Gandhi. The democratic values of India were crushed and freedom of expression was strangled," he added.

(With inputs from agencies)