PM Modi pays tribute to JP Narayan on his birth anniversary, recalls horrors of Emergency

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday paid homage to activist Jaiprakash Narayan on his birthday, calling him a tireless champion for democracy and social justice. Praising JP's extraordinary contribution to the Indian citizens and his fight to strengthen democracy.

Sharing a post on X, PM Modi said, "Loknayak JP dedicated his life to empowering ordinary citizens and strengthening Constitutional values. His clarion call for Sampoorna Kranti ignited a societal movement, envisioning a nation built on equality, ethics and good governance. He inspired numerous mass movements, notably in Bihar and Gujarat, which led to a socio-political awakening across India. These movements shook the then Congress Government at the Centre, which went on to impose the Emergency and trample over our Constitution."

Also Read

Kabaddi promoter shot dead by unidentified men while playing | Details

"We share a clear stance against terrorism": PM Modi after talks with Jordan’s King Abdullah II

Pahalgam terror attack: NIA files chargesheet, charges Pak-based handler, five others

PM Modi then criticised the Congress government of arresting Narayan during the Indira Gandhi-ruled emergency era. He then cited a few words from the book which Narayan had written while spending his days in prison. It said, 'Every nail driven into the coffin of Indian democracy is like a nail driven into my heart.'"During the Emergency, Loknayak JP spent several days in solitary confinement. His Prison Diary captures his anguish and unbroken faith in democracy, PM Modi wrote on his X post.

The story dates back to 1975, after the Allahabad High Court found then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi guilty of breaching electoral laws, Jayaprakash Narayan subsequently demanded her resignation along with that of chief ministers across the country and urged the armed forces and police to disregard unconstitutional and immoral orders.

He called for Sampurna Kranti, which aimed to reshape Indian society on the pillars of justice, equality, and morality. Feared by such action, Gandhi imposed a national Emergency on the midnight of June 25, 1975, leading to the arrest of Opposition leaders and dissenting voices.

Raising the voice against the injustice, Narayan gathered a crowd of 100,000 people at Delhi's Ramlila Maidan, where he recited Rashtrakavi Ramdhari Singh 'Dinkar's' iconic poem, 'Singhasan khaali karo ke janata aati hai', symbolising the people's assertion of democratic power. He was later detained in Chandigarh, where his health deteriorated during his imprisonment. Granted parole briefly to aid flood relief in Bihar, his condition worsened, leading to his release on November 12, 1975.