Veteran BJP leader L.K. Advani's fear of return of the Emergency was seized upon by opposition parties, including the Congress, Janata Dal-United and AAP, on Thursday to train guns against the Narendra Modi government.
Advani found unlikely supporters in Delhi and Bihar Chief Ministers Arvind Kejriwal and Nitish Kumar, while the Congress, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the Janata Dal-United and the Rashtriya Janata Dal started targeting Modi by terming Advani's comments as a veiled swipe at the prime minister. The Bharatiya Janata Party denied this.
In an interview to the Indian Express newspaper, Advani said that forces that can crush democracy were stronger at present and a repeat of an Emergency-like situation cannot be ruled out.
Congress spokesperson Tom Vadakkan said it is not only his party which is questioning the government "but even senior BJP leadership is raising questions on the efficacy of the government".
Another Congress spokesperson, Sanjay Jha tweeted: "A totalitarian system is gradually overwhelming India; Advani Ji's warnings confirm our worst apprehensions."
Kejriwal also took a dig at Prime Minister Modi in a reference to the various stand-offs between the central government and his government on issues including power to appoint and transfer officials.
"Advani ji is correct in saying that Emergency can't be ruled out. Is Delhi their first experiment," Kejriwal tweeted.
AAP leader Ashutosh tweeted that Advani's interview is first "indictment of Modi's politics". "He is saying democracy is not safe, emergency is not far, under Modi's leadership."
"When Modi was to be made PM candidate Advani discussed in his blog about Mussolini and Hitler. He was hinting at the future then under Modi," he said in a series of tweets.
Nitish Kumar, of the JD-U, said Advani was a veteran leader and there is need to give attention to his fear and worry.
"The BJP leader is right to a large extent in his remarks that at the present point of time, the forces that can crush democracy, notwithstanding the constitutional and legal safeguards, are stronger," he told media persons in Patna.
RJD chief Lalu Prasad also aimed his criticism at Modi, tweeting: "Already there is undeclared emergency as authoritarian & Hitlerian tendencies prevailing in country since May14. We hv exp. to win over it."
"Advani Ji proved that our concerns regarding anti-democratic elements & activities being sponsored & promoted by union govt are correct," he said in another tweet.
BJP spokesperson M.J. Akbar, however, said Advani may have been referring to institutions rather than individuals, and he does not think there is any chance of an Emergency-like situation.
In the interview to the Indian Express ahead of the 40th anniversary of the imposition of the Emergency during which he was jailed as part of the crackdown on opposition parties, Advani said "forces that can crush democracy, notwithstanding the constitutional and legal safeguards, are stronger".
Observing that he did not mean the political leadership was not mature, he said he did not have faith due to its weakness.
Advani also said that he did not have confidence that the Emergency cannot happen again, noting "there aren't enough safeguards in India in 2015".
Internal Emergency was imposed on the country by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on June 25-26, 1975, and it lasted for 19 months.
