New Delhi: A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the Emergency imposed in 1975 underlined the need for eternal vigilance to preserve democracy, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday backed his remark saying that the young generation must remember the dark chapter in India's electoral history.
"I think Prime Minister Modi's inclusion of imposition of Emergency in 'Mann ki Baat' was a message to the people that we must not forget the black day of the imposition of Emergency. The Congress, which claims to be today's paragons of virtues, says it has no tolerance towards any kind of limitation of freedom. It is actually responsible for the sin of imposing emergency and ensuring that people did not have civil liberties," BJP leader GVL Narasimha Rao told ANI.
Echoing similar sentiment, BJP leader Meenakshi Lekhi said the Congress has no right to point fingers at the Modi Government while having a black chapter of Emergency in past.
"What Prime Minister said was right. The Congress points fingers at us and what they did during their regime by imposing Emergency cannot be forgot so soon. People had to face many difficulties and harassment during the Emergency. The Congress has no right to speak against our Government," Lekhi said.
Yesterday, PM Modi had called the Emergency imposed on June 25, 1975 as a 'black night' which could not be forgotten.
He had recalled that democracy-lovers had fought a big battle against the Emergency imposed by then PM Indira Gandhi and had said that pro-democracy "heritage" needed to be strengthened.
In his monthly radio programme 'Mann Ki Baat', PM Modi had also said that it was essential to remember the incidents which have caused harm to democracy and move ahead towards the positives of democracy.
"Democracy is not only a system. It is our culture... Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty," he had said, as per PTI.
"Along with Jaiprakash Narayan, many prominent leaders were jailed. Even the judiciary did not remain unaffected by the shadow of the Emergency. The media was completely rendered useless," PM Modi had further said.
"The democracy lovers had fought a big battle and showed how democracy was engrained in the hearts of every citizen of the vast country. That was reflected through the elections. That is our heritage and we have to strengthen that heritage," he had said.
(With Agency inputs)
