Tripura: CPI(M) Recalls Emergency Horrors, Exposes BJP-RSS Duplicity
Haripada Das
ON the 50th anniversary of the Internal Emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi on June 25, 1975, the CPI(M) in Tripura organised hall meetings and discussions across various sub-divisions to reflect on the horrors of authoritarian rule.
A major programme was held at Agartala Town Hall on June 26, 2025, drawing a packed audience. It was addressed by Party senior leader Manik Sarkar, state secretary and Polit Bureau member Jitendra Chaudhury, and West Tripura district secretary Ratan Das. The meeting was presided over by Central Committee member Manik Dey.
BJP-RSS DUPLICITY
ON EMERGENCY
Speaking at the meeting, Jitendra Chaudhury unequivocally condemned the Emergency as an unprecedented assault on democracy. He recalled how it throttled dissent, suspended democratic rights, censored the media, jailed opposition leaders, intellectuals, and activists – all to cover up the internal crisis of the ruling Congress party and government.
He sharply criticised the BJP’s hypocrisy in observing June 25 as “Samvidhan Murder Day”, while concealing the fact that the RSS actively supported the Emergency at the time. Chaudhury cited a letter from then RSS chief Balasaheb Deoras, written from Yerawada Jail on August 22, 1975, where Deoras pleaded for lifting the ban on the RSS and justified the Emergency as a positive step to restore order. Deoras never condemned the Emergency, instead, he endorsed the suspension of fundamental rights, censorship of the press, jailing of opposition leaders, and curtailment of the judiciary.
This historical record clearly shows that the RSS-BJP has no legacy defending democracy, said Chaudhury. “Since coming to power in 2014, the BJP has systematically undermined constitutional and democratic rights, spread communal hatred, and pushed its agenda of a ‘Hindu Rashtra’ – a direct assault on the secular and democratic foundations of our Constitution.”
He concluded by calling out the irony of the BJP whose actions stab at the soul of the Constitution daily – now using public money to observe “Samvidhan Murder Day” for political gain.
TRIPURA UNDER
EMERGENCY
Former chief minister and Party senior leader Manik Sarkar recounted how Tripura had already experienced Emergency-like conditions well before the official proclamation.
He explained that the Congress government in Tripura, led by Sukhamay Sengupta, was weakened by internal factionalism. The crisis reached a turning point in April 1974, when the Congress, despite holding a two-thirds majority in the Assembly, lost the Rajya Sabha election to a CPI(M)-supported independent candidate due to cross-voting. This triggered widespread distrust within the ruling party. With doubts over whether the government could pass the 1975 state budget, political tensions mounted.
Simultaneously, Tripura witnessed a powerful wave of popular struggles. The CPI(M) mobilised people across the state, demanding food, relief, and work amid a near-famine situation. These protests culminated in a major ‘March to the Assembly’ in Agartala. Tribal and non-tribal communities also took to the streets with a four-point charter of demands, including the formation of an Autonomous District Council and official recognition of Kokborok as a state language.
The unrest deepened when the Tripura Employees Coordination Committee (TECC), the largest organisation of government employees, launched an indefinite strike from March 19, 1975, demanding better economic conditions and trade union rights. The strike, which lasted 12 days, nearly paralysed the administration and drew public support – including from some Congress MLAs. In response, the government unleashed harsh repression: leaders of the movement were arrested, and 31 teachers and employees were summarily dismissed. CPI(M) legislators, led by Leader of Opposition Nripen Chakraborty, exposed the government's failures in the Assembly, while treasury bench members sat silenced.
In a desperate attempt to save itself, the Congress government on May 22, 1975 – nearly a month before the national Emergency – arrested Nripen Chakraborty and 11 other CPI(M) MLAs from inside the Assembly, along with one of its own party MLAs. All were sent to Vellore Jail in Tamil Nadu. This unprecedented act stunned the nation.
Following the declaration of Emergency on June 25, 1975, the Tripura Congress regime intensified its authoritarian grip, using it as a tool to crush the opposition, particularly targeting the CPI(M). Numerous leaders were arrested and sent out of state, while many others went underground to evade arrest. Tripura effectively became a one-party police state, where democratic rights were suspended, dissent was stifled, and even press freedom was curtailed. Manik Sarkar emphasized that although Indira Gandhi was ultimately forced to withdraw the Emergency and accept electoral defeat, the episode served as a lasting lesson: that even the most powerful rulers must bow to the will of the people.
West Tripura district secretary Ratan Das added that the undeclared Emergency under the BJP today is more insidious. Unable to resolve the deepening crises facing India’s poor and working people, the BJP has chosen to distract public attention by whipping up religious hatred and invoking the failures of past Congress regimes. He described this as a neo-fascist trend that must be resisted, guided by the CPI(M)’s 24th Party Congress directives.
In his concluding remarks, Central Committee member Manik Dey said Tripura under BJP rule has become a laboratory of repression. With the government failing in every key sector affecting people's livelihoods, it increasingly relies on authoritarian methods to suppress dissent. However, he affirmed his confidence that when the people finally get their chance to respond, they will not miss it.
