New Delhi [India], June 24 : Noting that India is the mother of democracy, Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday slammed Congress for the imposition of Emergency in 1975 and said, "we overcame a dark chapter like the Emergency because our nation never bows down to dictatorship".
Addressing a programme on 50 years of Emergency at Pradhanmantri Sangrahalaya here, Amit Shah said that Emergency was imposed by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi as she saw threat to her power and there was no external danger or internal unrest.
"Today is the eve of the 50th anniversary of the Emergency... There may arise a question why something that happened 50 years ago is being discussed now... When 50 years of any national event are completed, good or bad, its memory fades away in society. If the memory of an event like the Emergency that shook the democracy fades away, then that is harmful to the nation," he said.
"Today, we are the world's largest democracy and the reason we overcame a dark chapter like the Emergency is because our nation never bows down to dictatorship. The world has witnessed the birth of democracy on this soil. India is the mother of democracy," he added.
Amit Shah said the first non-Congress government was formed in the country in the general elections held after the Emergency.
"At that time, no one would have liked the Emergency except for the dictators and the small group that benefited from it... They had an illusion that no one could challenge them, but after the Emergency, when the first Lok Sabha elections were held, for the first time after independence, a non-Congress government was formed and Morarji Desai became the Prime Minister," he said.
"It is difficult to define the Emergency in a single sentence. I have tried to come up with a definition. The conspiracy to convert a multi-party democracy of a democratic country in a dictatorship is a Emergency," he added.
He said the Modi government decided to observe June 25 as Samvidhan Hatya Diwas so that "the country remembers how a nation suffers when its leaders turn into dictators".
"During the Emergency, so many drastic changes were made that it came to be known as a 'mini-Constitution'. From the Preamble to the Basic Structure, everything was changed. The judiciary became submissive, and democratic rights were suspended. The nation can never forget. That is why PM Modi decided to observe June 25 as Samvidhan Hatya Diwas so that the country remembers how a nation suffers when its leaders turn into dictators," he said.
He said the spirit of the Constitution cannot be upheld by the courts or Parliament alone, it is also the responsibility and right of every citizen.
"I believe Samvidhan Hatya Diwas should be observed collectively and consciously, so that the youth never forget how the Constitution was once silenced," Amit Shah said.
He took a dig at opposition parties over their remarks against the government.
"Today, some people preach about the sanctity of the Constitution. But I want to ask -- which party do you belong to? Remember the morning when Indira Gandhi announced the Emergency on All India Radio. Was Parliament consulted before this? Were the opposition leaders and citizens taken into confidence. Those who talk about protecting democracy today -- were you the Rakshaks (protectors) of the Constitution back then, or its Bhakshaks (destroyers)? They claimed the Emergency was declared to protect the nation. But the truth is -- it was declared to protect their own power," he said.
"There was no threat to national security. There was no external danger, nor any internal unrest. The only threat was to Indira Ji's power, and for that, the Emergency was imposed. At 4 am, an emergency cabinet meeting was called. Babu Jagjivan Ram and Sadar Swaran Singh later said, they were not consulted on any agenda, but were merely informed," he added.
Amit Shah said the Emergency imposed on June 25, 1975 reminds people "of the extent to which Congress can go".