Jaishankar blames Emergency-era deal for fishermen's arrests by Sri Lanka

At BJP Yuva Morcha event, S Jaishankar said that Indian fishermen continue to suffer due to a 1970s Emergency-era pact with Sri Lanka that was passed without parliamentary debate or consensus

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday said Indian fishermen continue to be arrested by Sri Lankan authorities because of an agreement signed during the Emergency period, which stripped them of fishing rights in certain sea areas, news agency PTI reported. 

Speaking at an event organised by the BJP Yuva Morcha to mark 50 years of the Emergency, Jaishankar said the agreement would not have happened if Parliament had been working properly back then.

 

‘No debate, no consensus’

“Big decisions were sometimes taken without any parliamentary debate during the time,” he said, highlighting the lack of democratic processes under the Emergency. 

 

Referring to the ongoing issue of fishermen being detained by Sri Lankan Navy, Jaishankar said, “We hear about our fishermen arrested by Sri Lanka. The reason is that an agreement was entered into during the Emergency under which the rights of the fishermen for fishing in some sea waters of Sri Lanka was abandoned.”     

 

  He said, if the Parliament had functioned genuinely, the matter would have been debated and such a decision would not have been accepted. “The consequences of this decision are still visible in Tamil Nadu,” he said.

 

India’s image suffered, says Jaishankar

Reflecting on the broader implications of the Emergency, Jaishankar said the world’s perception of India as a vibrant democracy took a hit. “I heard from my seniors in the foreign service how difficult it was to defend India after the murder of the Constitution and democracy by the imposition of Emergency,” he said. 

He also shared personal memories from that period, mentioning police raids at Jawaharlal Nehru University hostels and his family's connection with anti-Emergency leaders such as George Fernandes.     

 

Criticism of dynastic politics

In a veiled attack on the Congress leadership, Jaishankar said the roots of the Emergency lay in prioritising familial power over national interest. “An Emergency situation arises when the ‘family’ is kept ahead of the country,” he said. “Some people keep the copy of the Constitution in their pockets but have other feelings in their hearts,” he added, in an apparent reference to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. 

The minister stressed on the need for an informed and empowered citizenry to prevent any repeat of such an authoritarian phase. “An empowered public would never let it happen,” he said. 

 

VIDEO | External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) speaks at the inaugural session of Mock Parliament organised by BJYM to mark 50 years of Emergency.  "Emergency was imposed to break the morale of society," he said.  (Full video available on PTI Videos -… pic.twitter.com/KQXhsP2Po7

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) June 27, 2025

  June 25: Samvidhan Hatya Divas

Union Minister Kiren Rijiju said on Thursday that the Union Cabinet has decided to observe June 25 as ‘Samvidhan Hatya Divas’ (Constitution Killing Day). The decision marks the 50th anniversary of the Emergency and aims to remind the nation of the excesses committed during that period. 

He also criticised the Congress party, accusing it of hypocrisy. “Those who ‘murdered’ the Constitution are flaunting a copy of it,” he said, taking a dig at the opposition. 

Recalling the imposition of the Emergency on the night of June 25, 1975, the minister said that during that period, opposition leaders were jailed, media was silenced, and civil liberties were severely restricted.

 

[With PTI inputs]