The painful memories of Emergency are still fresh in my mind even after a gap of 50 long years. I was picked up by police, beaten inside a lockup and thrown into a Tihar jail cell with adolescent criminals. It was a torturous journey for 19 months. Those were the dark days when most of us had almost lost hope about India getting back its trampled democracy.
Before narrating my ordeal, let me state some facts. On the night of June 25, 1975, at 11:45 pm, the then President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed signed the proclamation of Emergency. It was post facto approved by the Union Cabinet the next morning at 6 am.
At around the same time, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s joint secretary P. N. Bahl reached the newsroom of All India Radio and ordered that the 8 am morning news bulletin stands cancelled because the PM was going to address the nation at the same time. The nation then heard Indira Gandhi explaining why she imposed Emergency. No mention was made about all top opposition leaders taken into custody. Strict censorship regulations were imposed on print media.
We had already got news about imposition of Emergency at night. What happened the next morning was a mockery of our Constitution. By midnight, police had reached the homes of most of the top leaders, and political titans of the stature of Jayaprakash Narayan, Morarji Desai, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Lal Krishna Advani, Parkash Singh Badal, Charan Singh, Raj Narain, Piloo Mody and Biju Patnaik were rounded up.
Indira Gandhi did not wait for the formalities to be fulfilled. Power connections to newspapers on Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg in Delhi were cut off around midnight and several editors and journalists were arrested.
The entire nation was converted into a jail for political activists. More than a lakh people were arrested under MISA (Maintenance of Internal Security Act) and DIR (Defence of India Rules). During the Emergency, the Constitution, including its Preamble, was amended multiple times, and Right to Life was suspended.
Why did Indira Gandhi take this extreme step?
On June 12, 1975, Justice Jagmohan Lal Sinha of Allahabad High Court declared the election of Indira Gandhi from Rae Bareli as void and prohibited her from contesting election for six years. Why? Indira Gandhi’s rival Raj Narain had challenged her election alleging that the PM had appointed her private secretary Yashpal Kapoor, then a government employee, as her election agent. He had also alleged that one Swami Advaitanand was paid Rs 50,000 bribe to contest as an independent, and liquor and blankets were distributed to voters.
After the High Court verdict, the opposition parties demanded Indira’s resignation. A big rally was held at Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan, where J.P. described Indira Gandhi’s government as illegal and demanded her resignation. The same night, on the advice of her son Sanjay Gandhi, Haryana CM Bansi Lal and West Bengal CM Siddhartha Sankar Ray, the Prime Minister decided to impose Emergency.
How we evaded police?
On June 25 evening, I was in a hostel in Delhi University campus. I remember, Arun Jaitley came to the campus early in the morning, and we met at the Law Centre coffee house. Jaitley revealed how he had given the slip last night when police came calling at his residence.
At our meeting, we decided to raise our voice against dictatorship and take out a procession. There were activists from Samajwadi Party and CPI-M’s student wing SFI. We took out a procession inside the University campus. Jaitley stood on a table in the coffee house and gave a speech.
I noticed that some policemen in plainclothes had surrounded Jaitley. I gave the signal to Vijay Goel, who in turn gestured at Jaitley. All of us started running in different directions. I had to do pillion riding on Vijay Goel’s scooter. The person who was to take Jaitley on his scooter had fled out of fear. Jaitley was arrested and taken to Maurice Nagar police station.
We planned to take out a procession to the police station and rescue Jaitley who was the president of DUSU. The SHO at the police station took us aside and tried to explain that police have been given powers to arrest anybody without a warrant and shoot anybody indulging in rioting. It was from the SHO that we students learnt that during emergency, there shall be no freedom of expression and the right to protest. Arun Jaitley was arrested under MISA and sent to jail.
Only I and Vijay Goel were left with the scooter and all means of communication with others were snapped. We went to Vijay Goel’s home, collected some clothes and spent our nights in the homes of some well-wishers. We avoided staying at one place for long.
One day, we had an idea on how to spread awareness among people about what has happening during Emergency. We had read stories about our freedom movement. We decided to publish a cyclostyled news sheet, named it Mashaal. Since my handwriting was better, I used to write all news by hand on a paper and get it cyclostyled.
Near our campus was a coaching centre named Sharma New Arts College in Shakti Nagar. At night, when the coaching centre remained closed, I and Vijay Goel used to churn out nearly 500 copies of our news sheet on the cyclostyling machine. We used to put each sheet inside an envelope and distributed them at the homes of DU professors and even the Vice-Chancellor. We also distributed these envelopes in hostels.
This was my first introduction to the world of media. It was also my first introduction to the world of underground movement. This continued for several days. One night, Vijay Goel told me that police knew I do not stay in my home at night. Vijay decided to go to his home to bring some clothes and food. Soon after Vijay left, police came and caught me with the cyclostyled news sheets.
Police handcuffed me, dragged me to the nearest police station at night. The police officer asked, ‘where is your friend Vijay Goel’. I replied, he has gone home. The police officer asked me to ring him up and call him to a location. Police dialled his number and handed me the handset. Vijay’s mother took the call. I told her I wanted to speak to Vijay. She knew my voice and handed the phone to her son.
When Vijay came on line, I immediately shouted, “Daal Mein Kaala Hai, Nikal Jao”. The same moment, the police officer snatched the phone set from my hand, and he started slapping me. I was tortured for the whole night. I was made to sit on a chair with my hands tied behind, and a policeman rained lathi blows on my legs. Blood began oozing out of my legs.
The next morning, I was taken handcuffed by 3-4 policemen from police station to Tees Hazari court. People were watching the scene on the road. Outside the court, I saw my father standing in the crowd. He tried to come near to me, but policemen pushed him away.
I was pained on seeing this. I felt as if I would lose my courage. I was told by police to tell the magistrate that I beg apology for my mistakes and that I support Indira Gandhi’s 20-point programme. I may be released. But I was quite clear in my mind on what I would do. I neither feared jail nor beating.
It was my father ‘Babu Ji’, who gave me that courage. He came near me and told me, “Ghabraana Nahin (do not fear), if you think you are on the right path, do not turn back.” The magistrate sent me on judicial remand to Tihar jail. I was taken in a blue van along with criminals. With other prisoners, I was also given two rotis in hand, and the van reached Tihar jail.
Inside jail
Since I was under-18, an adolescent, the jail superintendent sent me to the teenagers’ ward, called ‘mundaa khaana’, instead of the political ward. I was sent to a cell, meant for four inmates, but there were 12 adolescents present.
When I spoke to the boys, one said he was a pickpocket, the other said, he used to steal water meters, the third said, he was an expert in chain snatching. I spent the entire night with them. Blood was still oozing from my legs and it was painful. There was no proper space to sit.
The next morning, the ward in-charge, known as Lambardaar, called me. He was serving life in a murder case and was the ‘boss’ of the ward. He was literate. When I told him that I had been arrested because of Emergency, he showed some sympathy. He told me, you have come to the wrong ward. You should have been in the ward for political prisoners.
Since boys from ‘Mundaa Khana’ used to perform duties in the political ward, the Lambardaar sent message about me to the political ward.
The next day, three persons from Ward No. 11 came to see me. I knew two of them, Mahavir Singh and Naresh Gaur. They took me to the political ward, where RSS people were overseeing all arrangements for the inmates.
They first took me to the dispensary, put ointment on my injures, arranged a hot water bath in the adjacent cell, gave me clean kurta, pyjama, and after giving food and medicines, they asked me to sleep. I got the chance to have a sound sleep after what seemed to be eternity.
The next morning, there was a sort of ‘camp’ inside the political ward. The inmates included those from RSS, Jamaat-e-Islami, Jana Sangh and Samajwadi Party. Often, there used to be rumours that all the inmates would be taken in a ship and sunk in the sea. One day, there was a rumour that political inmates staying in jails, will be taken to Siberia. Nobody knew what was happening in the world outside.
End of Emergency
In March, 1977, when Emergency restrictions were lifted, all political prisoners were released from jails. Indira Gandhi had decided to go for general elections.
There were several questions in our minds. One of them was: Have people forgotten what happened during 19 months of censorship? Will people come if we organize public meetings? Chaudhary Charan Singh was assigned the task of collecting crowds.
It was decided that the first meeting will be held either inside a room of the Constitution Club or on its lawns. But Jana Sangh leaders of Delhi like Kanwar Lal Gupta and Madan Lal Khurana said, there was tremendous enthusiasm among the people and the public rally should be held at Ramlila Maidan. Since I was selected as the first ‘time pass speaker’ at the rally, I reached the venue early.
Within a span of two hours, the entire Ramlila Maidan looked like a sea of people, which had spilled over to the adjoining roads. It was difficult for top leaders like Chaudhary Charan Singh, Morarji Desai and Atal Bihari Vajpayee to reach the venue in their vehicles, because of the sea of people.
That was the first day when we got clear inkling of what was in store for Indira Gandhi and her family in the oncoming general elections.
I remember the crowds roaring in approval, when Vajpayee stood up and recited an Urdu couplet: “Muddaton Baad Miley Hain Deewaney, Kahne Sunne Ko Hain Bahut Se Fasaaney, Khuli Hawaa Me Zara Saans Toh Len, Kab Tak Rahega Azadi, Kaun Jaane”. For two long minutes, the rapturous crowd went on clapping. A slogan was shouted, “Atal Bihari Bol Raha Hai, Indira Shaasan Dol Raha Hai”.
The government-run Doordarshan had decided to telecast the popular Raj Kapoor movie ‘Bobby’ on television to dissuade people from going to Ramlila Maidan. But lakhs of people came out of their homes to watch Jayaprakash Narayan, Morarji Bhai and Vajpayee speak. History was being written on Ramlila Maidan ground.
The general elections that soon followed saw both Indira Gandhi and her son Sanjay Gandhi lose in their constituencies of Rae Bareli and Amethi by decisive margins. Congress party was decimated across northern India.
On the day of counting, the frenzy and enthusiasm of people at Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg was electrifying. Major print media houses were displaying latest election results on huge boards and the people were clapping and roaring with approval as the results started pouring in.
The Prognosis
50 years have passed. Yet each moment remains etched in memory. From the dark nights of Emergency to the ray of hope in the dawn of democracy. Thousands of people spent entire night standing outside newspaper offices to watch each result being displayed on boards. Lakhs of people were dancing on the streets in joy.
The only line of fear in their mind was whether Indira Gandhi would reject the election results and reimpose Emergency. There were also speculations about whether Indira Gandhi would impose martial law by calling in the army. But the atmosphere throughout the country was such that there was no scope left for anything to stem the tsunami of popular anger.
When the Janata Party government was formed, the first task was to amend the Constitution in the manner so that no government in future could impose such a draconian Emergency. The Constitution was amended, censorship was withdrawn and laws were put in place so that no power in future can snatch our freedom of expression.