Overview

• Shashi Tharoor’s op-ed in Project Syndicate and Deepika brands the 1975–77 Emergency a “dark chapter,” detailing forced sterilisation drives led by Sanjay Gandhi, widespread slum demolitions and the suspension of fundamental rights
• Congress MP Manickam Tagore posted a cryptic jibe on X accusing Tharoor of echoing BJP rhetoric, signaling discomfort among party colleagues
• BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi seized on the op-ed to accuse the Congress of still supporting an Emergency mindset, reinforcing the ruling party’s critique of its rival’s history
• The Congress has refrained from imposing any formal disciplinary action against Tharoor, highlighting tensions between enforcing party unity and respecting individual dissent
• Observers warn that the controversy underscores the enduring relevance of Emergency-era lessons and the urgent need to safeguard judicial independence, press freedom and constitutional checks