Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Thursday, 25 June 2026 sharply attacked the opposition over the 1975 Emergency, accusing those who 'crushed the soul of the Constitution' during that period of now pretending to be its defenders.

Posting on the occasion of Samvidhan Hatya Diwas, Dhami wrote in Hindi: 'Jo logon ne aapatkaal mein Samvidhan ki aatma ko kuchalne ka prayas kiya, ve aaj haath mein Samvidhan ki prati lekar loktantra ko bachane ka dhong kar rahe hain' — 'Those who attempted to crush the soul of the Constitution during the Emergency are today carrying a copy of the Constitution in their hands and pretending to save democracy.'

Context

On 25 June 1975, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi declared a national Emergency that lasted 21 months, suspending fundamental rights and civil liberties guaranteed under the Constitution. The period is widely regarded as one of the darkest chapters in post-independence Indian democratic history. Samvidhan Hatya Diwas — literally 'Constitution Murder Day' — is the name given to this anniversary by the Bharatiya Janata Party.

The BJP has observed 25 June as Samvidhan Hatya Diwas annually, using the date to highlight what it describes as the Indian National Congress's historical assault on constitutional values. CM Dhami's post is consistent with this broader party-wide commemoration.

Policy Backdrop

The Emergency of 1975–77 remains a deeply contested moment in Indian political memory. During those 21 months, press freedoms were curtailed, political opponents were jailed, and elections were postponed. The constitutional machinery was effectively bypassed by executive decree.

The BJP's annual invocation of the Emergency serves a dual purpose: it positions the party as a guardian of constitutional democracy, and it functions as a counter-narrative against opposition criticism of the current government's record on democratic institutions. Dhami's post explicitly targets this tension — accusing critics of hypocrisy by holding up the Constitution while belonging to the party that suspended it.

Stakeholders and Impact

The primary target of Dhami's remarks, while unnamed in the post, is widely understood within the political context to be the Indian National Congress and its allies, who have in recent years made the Constitution a central campaign symbol. Opposition leaders have frequently been photographed holding copies of the Constitution at public events and in Parliament.

For BJP leaders and supporters, the 25 June anniversary is a mobilisation moment. For the opposition, such messaging renews pressure to respond to the Emergency's legacy — an episode that even some Congress leaders have at times acknowledged as a mistake. The exchange shapes the broader contest over which party can credibly claim to be the protector of Indian democracy.

What's Next

Responses from opposition parties are expected, as they typically push back against Emergency-anniversary messaging by pointing to contemporary governance concerns. Any references to the Emergency during the upcoming monsoon session of Parliament or in state-level commemorations across Uttarakhand will be closely watched. As the political calendar advances, the Emergency narrative is likely to remain a recurring flashpoint between the ruling party and the opposition.