Emergency proclamation 1975: revisiting the past

Posted on June 25, 2015 by Sandeep Bhalla

Remembering Emergency days from childhood.

Those born after 1980 must read this:

Emergency is a dirty word in India. Constitution had vested certain powers in the Government to be invoked in case of emergency. Indira Gandhi, the then Prime Minister invoked these powers on midnight of 25/26 June 1975 on the ground of ‘internal disturbance’ which ground has subsequently been deleted by Constitutional Amendment. The effect of Emergency Proclamation was that civil rights were suspended. Habeas Corpus was not available. Legal deliberations on abolition of due process is in a previous article here.
Mass arrest of dissenters and protestors was the first implication of emergency. Harassment and arrest of inconvenient politicians and lawyers was second. Mass vasectomy was next. Abuse of powers to arrest to settle personal scores by Congress party and Communist Party members was next. Soon Bureaucracy joined the party to settle scores or to make money.
Those with spine were either in jail or underground.

How was emergency proclamation affected average citizen?

For one thing, the trains were running on time. Absenteeism in Government offices was replaced with punctuality. I am not able to recall any other plus point. May be I was too young. But I noticed many things. Continue reading →

Nehru Gandhi Family: Who are you?

Posted on June 22, 2015 by Sandeep Bhalla

Nehru family: Who are they and upto what?

Last election saw the that ruling Congress Party, a Nehru Family governed (or owned?) political party, though polled 19% votes got less than 10% seats in Parliamentary Elections 2014. While the proprietors of the Party i.e. Nehru Family (now using different surnames) are looking into the causes of such massive loss, I landed on a page about Nehru Family here.

Nehru family five generation back:

The story dates back to 1857. The unsuccessful attempt by Indians to over throw the Imperial Government was over and British soldiers were repressing and killing the Mughal Officers. To escape, one Mughal kotwal (Chief of Police or present day Police Commissioner) along with his family escaped to Agra. Of course on foot and horses or bullock carts as there were no planes or trains at that time. Continue reading →

1984: when brutal barbarians roamed and death danced.

Posted on November 1, 2013 by Sandeep Bhalla

Image from Outlook Magazine

Memories are terrible things. Ethereal and intangible but potent enough to spoil the reality. This is what is happening today. Today is Dhanteras, the day for worshiping the Wealth or Gods of wealth. Diwali is a festival of celebration of wealth. Happy Dhanteras to all.

Remembering 1984:

On 31 Oct 1984, Indira Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India, was killed by her own body guards. The news spread like wild-fire. Special editions of news paper were published. I came to know from one such news paper. That road was strewn with torn newspapers carrying news and pictures of Indira. Roads were getting deserted. By late evening it was revealed that some Sikh pedestrians or bikers were roughed up by unknown mobs at various places.

Continue reading →

Due process of law in 1354, 1772, 1791, 1955, 1973, 2008 and 2012!

Posted on June 12, 2012 by Sandeep Bhalla

None shall be condemned without Due Process of Law.

Due process is the right to be treated fairly by law. Right of Personal Liberty to a common man who is neither Nobel, Aristocrat, Royal or Rich was conferred very late in the west. Following is the earliest known concept to England:

“That no Man of what Estate or Condition that he be, shall be put out of Land or Tenement, nor taken, nor imprisoned, nor disinherited, nor put to Death, without being brought in Answer by due Process of the Law.
( See: Liberty of Subject (1354) CHAPTER 3 28 Edw 3. The STATUTE of The Twenty-eighth Year of King Edward III.)

Original text of 28 Edw. 3; borrowed from: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/