Mysuru: Urging  the Congress to apologise for the imposition of Emergency by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, Opposition Leader in the State Legislative Assembly R. Ashoka questioned the Congress party’s stand on Emergency.

He was speaking at ‘50 years of dark History of the imposition of Emergency in the country’ programme, organised by the BJP at a Kalyana Mantap in Vijayanagar third stage here yesterday.

Stating  that the Congress is spending time without clarifying whether imposition of Emergency was right or wrong, Ashoka maintained that there is no clarity among Congress leaders on the issue.

Questioning Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who often speaks about Constitution, where he was when the Emergency was declared, Ashoka also sought answers from the CM on what he and the so called ‘defenders of the Constitution’ and ‘progressive thinkers’ were doing when the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi imposed Emergency and jailed many opposition leaders.

Likening Indira Gandhi’s rule during Emergency to that of Dictator Adolf Hitler, he said that he still feels scared to talk about the dark days of Emergency, when opposition leaders such as Atal Behari Vajpayee, L.K. Advani and George Fernandes were lathi charged,  tortured and jailed.

Recalling the days when he too was in jail during Emergency as a student leader, Ashoka said that Congress leaders then had raised sycophantic slogan ‘Indira is India’ as propaganda                              during Emergency.

Had Indira Gandhi been re-elected in the 1977 Lok Sabha polls, she would have banished all opposition leaders from the country, he contended.

Pointing out that it was the BJP which accorded ‘Bharat Ratna’ award to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, Ashoka lashed out at the Congress for harping on Dr. Ambedkar for everything, when the fact is that it was the Congress which made several amendments to the Constitution.

Several BJP and RSS leaders, including former MLCs G. Madhusudhan and Thontadarya, who had fought against Emergency, were felicitated on the occasion.

Former MLA Maruti Rao Pawar, State BJP Vice-President M. Rajendra, State BJP Minorities Morcha President Dr. Anil Thomas, City BJP President L. Nagendra, party leaders Hema Nandish, Cable Mahesh, V. Shylendra,  Somasundar, M.P. Rajesh, Gokul Govardhan, Puneeth and others were present.