On Saturday Shiv Sena (UBT) ridiculed the Centre’s decision to observe June 25 as ‘Samvidhan Hatya Diwas,’ marking the day the Emergency was declared in 1975. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was accused of having no real work and attempting to “mislead” people due to a lack of parliamentary majority.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut expressed his criticism at the Parliament House complex during the first session of the 18th Lok Sabha in New Delhi. Speaking to ANI, Raut emphasized that Shiv Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) had supported the Emergency. He justified the Emergency as a response to people who were allegedly attempting to create anarchy and making bombs in the country.
“They (BJP) have no work left. It has been 50 years, and people have forgotten the Emergency,” Raut stated. He argued that the Emergency was imposed to maintain national security amidst calls for the army to defy government orders and to curb bomb-making activities.
In response, BJP leader Ajay Alok dismissed Raut’s remarks as “meaningless and pointless.” He emphasized the importance of remembering June 25, 1975, to educate current and future generations about the suspension of constitutional rights on that day.
A gazette notification issued by the Union home ministry noted that the Emergency declaration led to the gross abuse of power and atrocities against the Indian people. The notification declared June 25 as ‘Samvidhan Hatya Diwas’ to honor those who suffered and fought against the abuse of power during the Emergency and to reaffirm the nation’s commitment to preventing such abuses in the future.
The announcement sparked a political controversy, with Congress calling it another “headline-grabbing exercise in hypocrisy” by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
