A right-wing organisation — loktantra Senani Sangh (lSS) affiliated with Rashtriya Swaraj Sangh (RSS) — has demanded status of ‘freedom fighter’ for those who were sent to jail as result of Emergency in the year 1975 declared by then Congress-led Government.
Besides, the organisation has also passed another resolution to demand a dedicated chapter on ‘the 1975 Emergency’ in school and college curriculum, so that next generation too know about it.
The organisation wants that those who were jailed under Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) and Defence of India Act (DIA) due to the Emergency be given the status of a freedom fighter and provided all those facilities that are given to the freedom fighters with immediate effect. lSS also wants inclusion of a subject on the Emergency in political science, history and journalism. The right-wing organisation demands research on the topic for PhD students.
Interestingly, both these resolutions were witnessed by two governors - OP Kohli (Gujarat) and Vajubhai Vala (Karnataka). The programme was also attended by two senior Ministers of BJP-ruled Gujarat Government - Education Minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama and Vijay Rupani, Minister of Transport, Water Supply, labour and Employment. Rupani is also Gujarat BJP president.
Karnataka governor Vajubhai, who himself was behind the bars during Emergency, opined that June 25th 1975 was the black day of India post-independence and there is a need to spread awareness about Emergency among the people. Gujarat governor Kohli, who was professor and also arrested under MISA, said that the next generation should know how freedom and democratic values were supressed through the weapon called - Emergency.
“It is important to include the subject of the Emergency in school and college curriculum because the matter (issue) is now two-generations old. Few in the new generation know about it. We need to acquaint new generation with the fact as to how the Emergency was a way to suppress freedom and democratic values and how over a lakh people were jailed for the cause of freedom and democracy,” he said.