On June 25, 1975, civil liberties were suspended. Political dissent was criminalised. The Emergency marked India's most severe democratic breakdown
The Cabinet, Parliament, and Supreme Court failed to check the executive. Even habeas corpus was denied
Newsrooms were silenced. Doordarshan and AIR became the only voices. The Indian Express responded with a blank editorial page
Mass sterilisation and forced slum demolitions were carried out with impunity — shielded by power, not policy
Censorship disconnected the regime from reality. The 1977 election defeat was a direct result of suppressing dissent
The Emergency ended. But its warnings endure. Democracy’s guardrails can’t protect themselves — they need defenders