India Marks 51st Anniversary of Emergency: A Defining Experience for Democracy Survivors

The Emergency, which came into force on 25 June 1975, is a chapter in the history of Indian democracy whose memories have not faded even after five decades. Thousands of people were jailed without trial, newspapers were censored, dissent was criminalised and civil liberties were curbed unprecedentedly. Today, as the country marks the 51st anniversary of the Emergency, eyewitnesses and struggle survivors of that period remember it not just as a political event but as a defining experience of their lives. Some tried to save the voice of democracy through the underground press, some dreamt of a future in prison dungeons, some held on to democratic values under arrest and torture, some opened the doors of their homes to agitators. In the memories of these people, the Emergency is not just a symbol of repression and fear, it is also a living lesson in the importance of democracy, freedom of expression and civil liberties. Five decades later, they acknowledge that governments have changed, but only as much as the period of Dr.Samendra Sharma, Principal of Pathankot College, has changed.