June 25 To Be Observed As 'Samvidhaan Hatya Diwas': Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday said that the Centre has decided to observe June 25, the day the Emergency was imposed by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1975, as the 'Samvidhaan Hatya Diwas'.

Centre's decision came within a month since the 49th anniversary of one of the most controversial episodes of Indian politics.

Taking to social media platform X, Shah posted a gazette notification saying, "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."

"This day will commemorate the massive contributions of all those who endured the inhuman pains of the 1975 Emergency," he further added.

Congress-BJP feud over 'love for constitution'

Throughout Narendra Modi's regime as the prime minister, Congress and other opposition parties have held the ruling BJP accountable for violating the Constitution alongside weakening the constitutional institutions.

The accusation gained more momentum ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections when Karnataka BJP MP Anantkumar Hegde and the BJP's Meerut candidate Arun Govil said that the NDA was aiming to bag 400 seats in a bid to amend the Constitution. 

'No right to show love for...': PM Modi on 49th anniversary of 1975 Emergency

On June 25 this year, which marked the 49th anniversary of the Emergency, PM Narendra Modi said those who imposed it "have no right to profess their love for our Constitution."

In a series of posts on microblogging platform X, PM Modi said that the dark days were a reminder of how the Congress subverted basic freedoms and trampled over the Constitution which every Indian respects greatly.

 "Those who imposed the Emergency have no right to profess their love for our Constitution. These are the same people who have imposed Article 356 on innumerable occasions, got a Bill to destroy press freedom, destroyed federalism and violated every aspect of the Constitution."

"The mindset which led to the imposition of the Emergency is very much alive among the same Party which imposed it. They hide their disdain for the Constitution through their tokenism but the people of India have seen through their antics and that is why they have rejected them time and again," PM Modi added.