NEW DELHI, November 7 (Aalimi Nation) – Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi has said that democratic rights were curtailed during the 1975 Emergency but that it was done constitutionally, in remarks made in an interview ahead of the launch of her book, "Belonging: A Journey of Love".

What Sonia Gandhi said on the Emergency

"Yes, democratic rights had been curtailed, and there was a suspension of habeas corpus, but it was done constitutionally," she said. She added that she learned the true gravity of events only after the Emergency.

Looking at the period from the perspective of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, she described a leader struggling with "violent protests, government offices and public transport set on fire, widespread organised unrest", along with a call for the bureaucracy and the armed forces to disobey orders.

She said hindsight helps people see the period in better perspective.

Asked about Sanjay Gandhi, who is often seen as synonymous with the Emergency, she said he was not the only one pushing for it. She said Indira Gandhi faced "a lot of pressure from some of her senior colleagues", and that there were "very few people around her like Rajiv who had a different point of view". Rajiv Gandhi, her late husband, later became Prime Minister.

Sonia Gandhi said Indira Gandhi eventually understood the situation and acted to remedy it. She called the March 1977 general election and, Sonia Gandhi noted, publicly expressed regret and apologised for the excesses of the Emergency.

The Emergency was imposed just before midnight on June 25, 1975. President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed issued the proclamation at the Prime Minister's request, and the Union Cabinet later ratified it. On January 18, 1977, Indira Gandhi announced fresh elections and released political prisoners. On March 16, 1977, she and Sanjay Gandhi lost their Lok Sabha seats. The Emergency formally ended on March 21, 1977.

The Emergency remains a recurring point of political argument. The BJP has frequently criticised the Congress over the period, and the Union government observes "Samvidhan Hatya Diwas" to mark it. No reaction from the BJP to Sonia Gandhi's remarks on the Emergency had been reported at the time of writing.

The book is scheduled for launch on November 10.