On the occasion of the  50th anniversary of the Emergency  imposed by the then Indira Gandhi’s Congress government, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath criticised the grand old party and its allies, accusing them of continuing to undermine the Constitution. 

Speaking at a press conference held at his official residence, he remarked that although the Congress’s faces might have changed over the past 50 years, its character and actions had remained unchanged since 1975.

He vividly recalled the harsh measures taken during the Emergency, such as the Congress’s audacious attempt to undermine the Constitution by amending its Preamble, the complete suspension of citizens’ fundamental rights, and the judiciary’s rights being held hostage. Adityanath underscored that despite changes in leadership, the character of the Congress remained the same.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath stated, “50 years ago, on this day, late at night, a dark chapter was written when the then Congress government conspired to undermine democracy by strangling the Constitution of India.”

He added, “The government led by Indira Gandhi attempted to destroy India’s democracy on the night of June 25, 1975. During this period, democracy was stifled by imprisoning opposition leaders such as Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Morarji Desai, Jai Prakash Narayan, and Lal Krishna Advani.”

He noted that the Congress’s dictatorial attitude was evident not only in 1975 but also immediately after Independence. Within two years of adopting the Constitution, the Congress challenged the country’s integrity by amending it and forcibly inserting Article 370, Yogi said.

“Over the years, the Congress has consistently tried to weaken the pillars of democracy, by banning the media and using other indirect methods. The nation and the world witnessed the culmination of these actions on June 25, 1975,” he added.

Yogi also accused the current Congress leadership of hypocrisy. He claimed that while they advocate for democracy, they undermine it by questioning India’s electoral system and democracy when abroad.

He accused them of denigrating India and its democratic processes internationally. He also alleged that they deflected their inefficiencies within India by blaming electronic voting machines (EVMs) and obstructing the election process.

He asserted that the Congress, which attempted to dismantle the Constitution in 1975, continues to follow the same path today. According to him, the Congress-led governments’ attitudes, working styles, and actions over the years exemplify this behaviour.

Yogi also criticised the Congress’s allies while pointing out that the current generation of leaders, whose predecessors endured imprisonment in 1975 to defend democracy, the Constitution, and civil rights, now align with the same Congress.

He expressed surprise that these leaders are now complicit in efforts to steer the country back towards dictatorship and anti-democratic, anti-constitutional policies.

“If you examine the working methods of the Congress’s allies — whether in Bengal with the TMC, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, or other Congress-led governments, you will see that they are misleading the public and disrupting parliamentary proceedings under the guise of upholding the Constitution,” he argued further.

Yogi urged the Congress leaders to introspect and question whether they have genuinely adhered to the Constitution. He recounted that a senior Congress leader once tore a bill on the floor of Parliament, thus undermining democracy.

Such actions, he argued, have continually weakened democratic principles. He asserted that the people of India would never forgive the Congress for these transgressions, nor would they accept political parties that have directly or indirectly supported the Congress’s authoritarian tendencies. He asked the Congress and its allies to apologise to the nation for repeatedly disregarding constitutional provisions.