Karnataka BJP to launch statewide awareness drive on emergency anniversary

The Karnataka unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday announced a week-long public awareness campaign from June 22 to June 30, marking 50 years since the imposition of Emergency in India. The campaign, organised in collaboration with Citizens for Social Justice, lawyers' associations, and civil society groups, aims to educate citizens about what the party calls the "dark era" of Indian democracy under Congress rule.

The BJP launched the campaign posters at its state office in Bengaluru. Former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda will inaugurate the main event at 4:30 pm on June 24 at Town Hall, Bengaluru, with former Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa, a MISA detainee during the Emergency, presiding over the session.

C.T. Ravi, BJP MLC and former National General Secretary, addressed a joint press conference stating, “This campaign is not just a remembrance. It’s to ensure that such a dictatorship is never repeated in India.” He also declared that June 25, 2025, marks five decades since then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi declared Emergency in 1975 — a 21-month period during which civil liberties were curtailed, the press was muzzled, and constitutional rights were suspended.

The party plans to honour individuals detained under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) during the Emergency. Their personal experiences will be documented and shared through dialogues with youth. A symbolic jail revisit and awareness marches are also part of the campaign itinerary.

Columnist and political commentator S. Gurumurthy will deliver the keynote address at the June 24 event. BJP State President B.Y. Vijayendra, Union Ministers Pralhad Joshi, Shobha Karandlaje, Hardeep Singh Puri, V. Somanna, and former Chief Ministers D.V. Sadananda Gowda, Jagadish Shettar, and Basavaraj Bommai will travel across districts to spearhead the outreach.

Calling the Emergency "India’s second freedom struggle," Ravi said the movement led by Jayaprakash Narayan had brought together leaders like Atal Bihari Vajpayee, L.K. Advani, George Fernandes, and regional figures including H.D. Deve Gowda and B.S. Yediyurappa.

The BJP also took aim at Congress leaders, with Ravi alleging that present-day top brass like AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge were then sycophants of Indira Gandhi, echoing slogans such as "India is Indira, Indira is India."

An exhibition detailing the Emergency period will be held during the campaign, showcasing what the BJP terms as “the black chapter in Indian democracy.”