The Lok Sabha’s special discussion on 75 years of the Constitution was expected to be an occasion for the ruling party and opposition to quietly reflect and assess functioning of the ideas contained in the document, identify its shortcomings and form a general consensus on the way forward. Instead, the occasion turned out to be a competition to score over each other. The ruling side rapped the Congress for imposing Emergency in 1975 and the Opposition defended by saying there was an ‘’undeclared Emergency’’ in the country now. Unfortunately, much of the debate about the Constitution dragged on the Nehru family, the Emergency, the Modi government and a host of charges and counter charges. Of course, the 1975 Emergency were the dark days for Indian democracy which lasted almost two years. Nonetheless, as a matter of courtesy, PM Modi should acknowledge the sacrifices made by his adversary to gain independence from colonial rule. A mention of how the Grand Old Party stood for democracy by developing its institutions and staying the course would have made his criticism all the more credible.
