Much has been written about the contribution of Indira Gandhi to the country in the tributes on her death anniversary. Though they do take note of the Emergency she foisted on the people to save her own skin, there is an important point that is missed in its implication for the future of democracy. Until the Emergency, there was a laid-back attitude among the intelligentsia that democracy would never be subverted because the average Indian would not tolerate the suspension of his rights. Unlike in the case of many other countries like the UK or the US, our experience of democracy was only a quarter-century old at that time. People accepted the Emergency and went about their lives as if nothing had happened. True, there were some stray cases of protest in public or in the press, either overtly or covertly, but they were suppressed without anyone noticing them.
There are many old-timers, particularly in the south, who still feel nostalgic about the ‘benefits’ of the Emergency like curbs on trade unionism and bandhs that disturbed the common man’s life, trains running to time, staff being punctual in attendance at offices, etc. If she was defeated in the subsequent election it was because of the extensive publicity on the atrocities committed earlier. She was back in power soon. The Emergency was like a laboratory experiment that proved the weak foundation of democracy. And there lies the disservice that Indira Gandhi rendered proving something that was not known till then thus giving ideas to potential dictators.
The second point is the stranglehold that Sanjay Gandhi had on the leader who was glorified as the iron lady. Although one would not be interested in the private lives of others, here is a historical figure whose life impinged on the nation’s destiny.
A Seshan, on email
Readers should write to:
The Editor, Business Standard,
Nehru House,
4, Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg,
New Delhi 110 002,
Fax: (011) 23720201;
letters@bsmail.in