BJP honors democracy fighters
Jamshedpur: In protest against the Emergency imposed by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1975, the BJP Jamshedpur unit celebrated Black Day on Friday. In a program organized under the leadership of president Gunjan Yadav at the district office of Sakchi, BJP leaders paid tribute to Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Narayan by remembering the emergency as the darkest chapter in Indian history.
On this occasion, many democracy fighters, including the party’s national vice president cum former chief minister Raghubar Das, who were jailed during the emergency, shared the experiences of the emergency. Das honored democracy lovers Ashwini Kumar Awasthi, Ram Pukar Pandey and Munna Rajak, who were tortured in jail during the Emergency, by presenting them with angavastras.
Addressing the workers on this occasion, former CM said that the emergency imposed on the midnight of June 25, 1975 is the most tarnished chapter of Indian democracy. Recalling the struggle of many leaders including Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Narayan, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Lal Krishna Advani, George Fernandes, Chaudhary Charan Singh, Morarji Desai, Nanaji Deshmukh, Arun Jaitley during the Emergency, he said that their struggle and nationwide movement helped the Congress. Democracy was ousted from power and again democracy was restored in the country.
Das described the contribution of the workers of the political party Bharatiya Jana Sangh and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh as unforgettable during the Emergency. He said that in those days the Jan Sangh workers and volunteers who suffered the most in the movement were jailed and tortured. He said that by misusing Article 352 of the Indian Constitution, the whole country was made a prison and censorship was imposed on the freedom of expression.
During this, the media, the fourth pillar of democracy, was also attacked. The same was printed in newspapers and magazines and was broadcast on All India Radio, which was wanted by the government of Indira Gandhi at that time. Das also shared his experience of going to jail during Emergency. He told that during those days of student politics, there was information about the imposition of emergency in the grounds of Ashish Kishor Sangh in Bhalubasa while building the office of the student struggle committee. He was arrested on July 6, at 2 pm amidst heavy rain.