BJP to commemorate 40th anniversary of Emergency, Modi says democratic ideals must be strengthened

New Delhi: Remembering the dark days of Emergency, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said a vibrant liberal democracy is the key to progress. "Let us do everything possible to further strengthen our democratic ideals & ethos. Emergency was a great opportunity to work with a wide spectrum of leaders & organisations fighting for the same goal-return of democracy. Personally, the Emergency brings back many memories. As youngsters, we learnt a lot during the anti-Emergency movement," he tweeted.

Paying tributes to the leaders hwo fought hard to save teh democracy, he said, "We are very proud of the lakhs of people, who resisted the Emergency & whose efforts ensured that our democratic fabric is preserved. Inspired by the call of JP, several men & women across India selflessly immersed themselves in the movement to safeguard our democracy."

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will commemorate the 40th anniversary of the 1975 Emergency on Thursday. Party President Amit Shah will be presiding over a high-profile event in the national capital on Thursday.

BJP Patriarch LK Advani had recently sparked a controversy when in an interview he said that the forces that can crush democracy have become stronger and he felt that Emergency can be declared once again. The Constitution was suspended by former PM Indira Gandhi in 1975 and lasted till March 1977.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley who spent 19 months in prison during the 1975 Emergency, said "it is not possible for anybody to convert a democratic India into a "dictatorship" today."

Looking back at the dark days of Emergency, the senior BJP leader said that 40 years back the media was vulnerable, police and bureaucracy were compliant, and for the Supreme Court also the Emergency was its "darkest hour". "Is it possible to replicate such a situation now? I have my doubts," he said.

Jaitley said Emergency was a phase which showed that a democracy can be converted into a dictatorship by using some provisions of the Constitution and all the major institutions like bureaucracy, police, media and judiciary can collapse.