On the occasion of Samvidhan Hatya Diwas today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi saluted those who stood firm in the fight against the Emergency. In a social media post, Mr. Modi said, today, the country marks fifty years since one of the darkest chapters in India’s democratic history. He said, on this day, the values enshrined in the Indian Constitution were set aside, fundamental rights were suspended, press freedom was extinguished, and several political leaders, social workers, students and citizens were jailed.

The Prime Minister noted that during the emergency, people from all over the country, from all walks of life, from diverse ideologies, worked closely with each other with one aim to protect India’s democratic fabric and to preserve the ideals for which freedom fighters devoted their lives. He said that it was their collective struggle that ensured that the Congress Government had to restore democracy and call for fresh elections, which they badly lost.

Mr. Modi reiterated the government’s commitment to strengthening the principles in the Constitution and working together to realise its vision of a Viksit Bharat. He expressed hope that the country would scale new heights of progress and fulfil the dreams of the poor and downtrodden.