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External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Friday strongly criticized the Gandhi family over the imposition of the Emergency in 1975 by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, calling it an act driven by a sense of entitlement and arrogance. He asserted that the Emergency happened because “a single family considered itself bigger than the nation.” Jaishankar was speaking at the inaugural event of the Mock Parliament organised by the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) to mark 50 years since the Emergency. Referring to the satirical film Kissa Kursi Ka, he said, “The three words in the film’s title sum up the reason behind the Emergency – it was all about clinging to power.” “When a family considers itself above the nation, things like the Emergency take place,” he said.“The one lesson the Emergency taught us is – never take freedom for granted.” Impact on Society and Democracy The minister highlighted the widespread impact of the Emergency beyond politics. “It was not just a political crackdown. The aim was to break the morale of society. People were arrested without trial, not knowing if or when they would be released,” he said. He further pointed out that many who weren’t even politically active were affected. “Those who were politically involved knew arrest was inevitable. Those who weren’t were still not spared.” Backdrop of the Emergency Jaishankar outlined the political background of the time, stating that although Indira Gandhi won the 1971 elections, her government quickly became unpopular due to corruption and inflation. He said, “There were public agitations in Gujarat and Bihar, and serious questions were being raised about the business dealings of the then ‘yuvraj’.” The turning point came when the Allahabad High Court ruled Indira Gandhi guilty of electoral malpractices and misuse of government machinery. Instead of resigning or accepting the verdict, she imposed the Emergency, and the then-President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed signed the proclamation. Civil liberties were suspended, the press was gagged, and political opponents and activists were thrown into jail, marking what Jaishankar described as the “darkest day of Indian democracy.” Indirect Swipe at Rahul Gandhi In a veiled reference to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Jaishankar remarked that some people may be “carrying the Constitution in their hands, but their intentions are different.” He said political parties have their own “DNA”, and that the Congress party has never expressed regret for the Emergency or acknowledged it as a mistake. Samvidhan Hatya Diwas This year marks 50 years of the Emergency, imposed on June 25, 1975. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has reportedly directed that legal records of the Emergency period be preserved for historical purposes. In concluding remarks, Jaishankar stated, “The people of India remember this day as Samvidhan Hatya Diwas. On this day, the Indian Constitution was set aside, press freedom was extinguished, and thousands of political leaders, students, and citizens were jailed.It was as if the government placed democracy itself under arrest.”

Search and rescue efforts resumed on Friday morning in Himachal Pradesh as joint teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), police, and home guards continued the operation to locate six people missing after cloudbursts and flash floods struck the Kangra and Kullu districts on Wednesday. Officials said five bodies have been recovered so far from the site of a hydroelectric project in Kangra that was severely impacted by the flash floods. The search is still on for three individuals in Kangra and three more who went missing after a cloudburst in Rehla Bihal, Kullu. One of the survivors, a woman named Lovely from Chamba district, was rescued from a forest area near the project site. She told rescue teams that there were 13 people in the camp at the time of the flood. Five of them managed to run toward the hills, while the others were swept away by the powerful current. “We saw the floodwaters approaching and screamed to warn those below before running for our lives,” said Daya Kishan, a laborer who escaped the flash floods. At the time of the incident, construction work at the project had been suspended due to heavy rain. Workers were resting in temporary shelters when sudden floodwaters from the Manuni Khad and nearby drains changed course and rushed through the area, dragging several workers along. NDRF Commandant Baljinder Singh confirmed that their teams are continuing efforts to trace those missing near the project site. Meanwhile, BJP MLA from Dharamshala, Sudhir Sharma, has raised concerns over alleged negligence. He claimed that shelters were built dangerously close to a stream and accused the authorities of failing to relocate workers to safer areas despite clear signs of worsening weather. He has demanded a probe into the matter.