India News

The Role Of The Cold War In Indira Gandhi’s Emergency

Published

8 years ago

July 7, 2018

The Role Of The Cold War In Indira Gandhi’s Emergency

~By Saeed Naqvi

Indira Gandhi declared the emergency in 1975, plonk in the middle of the most intense phase of the cold war. Détente was going so badly for the Americans that stand up comedians in Washington were comparing it to a wife swapping party “from where you return alone.”

After the Vietnam debacle, Washington was going to exert every muscle not to allow Moscow to build upon the strategic asset it had created for itself in New Delhi during the 1971 Bangladesh war.

In fact, the Congress split of 1969 was itself an advantage for Moscow. Mrs. Gandhi had discarded the conservative, pro capital big wigs, more comfortable with Congress stalwarts like Morarji Desai whom she had defeated in the Parliamentary party contest to become Prime Minister in 1966.

Not only was a former card carrying communist (from Eton and Oxford too), Mohan Kumaramangalam part author of the split, he had worked out an arrangement with the General Secretary of the CPI, S.A. Dange described as a policy of “Unite and Struggle”. We shall, said Dange, unite with the Congress’s progressive policies but “struggle” against its “anti people” deviations.

This was a pronounced leftward lurch and it was going to be resisted by a coalition of the Right, both internal and external. Indeed, as early as 1967, within a year of her coming to power, Mrs. Gandhi was given notice: she lost elections in eight states to parties of the opposition. This groundswell would obviously suit the purposes of the Congress old guard discarded by Mrs. Gandhi.

The most succinct observation on Mrs. Gandhi’s ideological leanings came from the correspondent of the Times London, Peter Hazelhurst: “She is a little to the Left of self interest.”

Her ideological inconsistency becomes apparent if one reverts to her earliest days in 1959 as President of the Congress. She dismissed the world’s first communist government which had come to power through the ballot box in Kerala. That she took American help to unsettle Kerala to justify the state government’s dismissal was revealed by US ambassador, Ellsworth Bunker in an oral interview kept in the Columbia University archives. Whatever doubts there might have been about the Bunker revelations, were cleared later by Ambassador Daniel Patrick Moynihan in his memoirs.

During her Prime Ministership in 1976, the Congress party raised a storm against the US having installed a nuclear device on Nanda Devi peak to spy on China. The controversy had many twists. A joint CIA and Intelligence Bureau effort to install the device in 1965 (Lal Bahadur Shastri was Prime Minister then) had failed because of bad weather. Worse, two plutonium laden capsules had been lost. According to the Intelligence estimates the plutonium was enough for half a Hiroshima bomb.

In the course of an interview, Chester Bowles, US ambassador during Indira Gandhi’s first innings, took my breath away. He couldn’t understand Congress protest. “After all Indira had asked me to complete in 1966 the project which had been aborted in 1965.”

Well, this is how the Congress’s attitude towards the super powers varied from time to time. But for the West the spectacle of Mrs. Gandhi and Dange in a warm embrace was alarming because of the context. The West had taken a series of knocks – Vietnam, Angola, Mozambique, Ethiopia, Nicaragua were all communist. Additionally Communist leaders Enrico Berlinguer, Georges Marchais, Santiago Carrillo in Italy, France and Spain respectively were a headache for the West. Given this state of play, India was too priceless a trophy to be easily lost to Moscow’s sphere of influence.

The obstacle in the way of a counteroffensive was Mrs. Gandhi’s personality. She had evolved into a charismatic and, therefore, invincible leader. Proprietor of the Indian Express, Ramnath Goenka and Nanaji Deshmukh, fell into deep thought.

The Indian mind reveres renunciation. It occurred to the head hunters that once a top ranking Socialist leader, Jayaprakash Narayan had renounced political power. He was keeping himself busy with Gandhiji’s ashrams and such unlikely causes as Acharya Vinoba Bhave’s Bhoodan or Land Gift movement. JP agreed to lead the movement provided it remained peaceful.

The youth were in agitation across the globe against the excesses of the Vietnam War – Grosvenor Square, London, barricades in Paris, police shooting down of students at the Kent state university in Ohio, US. Soon thereafter the Navnirman Andolan, youth agitation in Gujarat erupted on a seemingly flimsy issue of hostel fees. After visiting Gujarat, JP was prevailed upon to launch a similar movement against corruption and bad governance in Bihar. It was a tepid agenda livened up only by the media dedicated to the task of keeping up the pressure on New Delhi, boosting notions of a “total revolution” one day, asking police and the bureaucracy not to obey “bad” orders another, and so on. The immediate target of the “movement” was a hapless Chief Minister, Abdul Ghafoor, quite bewildered by his own eminence. Why was he in the eye of a storm? He had sunken cheeks and a drooping frame, draped in a much worn Sherwani. By way of hospitality for visiting scribes, he would fetch a bottle of old smuggler Scotch whisky from his wardrobe full of smudged clothes which were clearly waiting for laundry. He was a simple man, not a plausible enough crook to invite a national movement for his ouster.

JP, who had invited me to stay in his house in Patna’s Kadam Kuan, listened to my stories even about the CM with a kindly smile. He was a trusting man and totally non judgemental about the wide range of political interests who had clambered onto his movement.

The movement was carried mostly by RSS cadres, with a sprinkling of socialists, Gandhians and Congress (O), mostly those who had been shown the door by Mrs. Gandhi in 1969. This exactly was the rough outline of the group which morphed into a coalition in the course of the movement. The coalition came to power in 1977 as the Janata Party.

Supposing the Allahabad High Court had not disqualified Mrs. Gandhi, how would events have shaped? If Sanjay Gandhi, Siddhartha Shankar Ray, Muhammad Yunus and others had not forced her hand on the Emergency, how would the Mrs. Gandhi-JP standoff have concluded?

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IPS Officer Nupur Prasad gets Medal for Meritorious Service after Sushant Singh Rajput probe

IPS officer Nupur Prasad, who led the CBI investigation into Sushant Singh Rajput’s death, has been selected for the Medal for Meritorious Service this year.

Published

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August 15, 2026

APNLive Desk

IPS officer Nupur Prasad, who led the CBI investigation into actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death, has been recognised with the Medal for Meritorious Service (MSM) this year.

A 2007-batch AGMUT cadre officer, Ms Prasad recently returned to the Delhi Police after completing her tenure with the CBI. She is currently serving as Joint Commissioner of Police in the Economic Offences Wing (EOW), where she oversees investigations involving financial and economic crimes.

The award is part of this year’s recognition for police personnel for distinguished and meritorious service. Such honours recognise contributions in areas including investigation, crime prevention, public service, law and order and administration.

Nupur Prasad’s role in Sushant Singh Rajput case

Ms Prasad came into national focus during the CBI investigation into the death of Sushant Singh Rajput, who was found dead at his Mumbai residence on June 14, 2020.

The case was transferred to the CBI in August 2020 following a complaint by the actor’s family and a legal dispute over jurisdiction.

During her tenure with the agency, Ms Prasad supervised key aspects of the investigation, including the examination of witness statements, forensic evidence and medical records.

In 2025, the CBI filed closure reports, saying its investigation found no evidence of foul play, abetment to suicide or criminal conspiracy in the actor’s death.

Career across Delhi Police, CBI

Ms Prasad has served in several positions during her career, including assignments in the Delhi Police, CBI, Arunachal Pradesh and West Bengal.

Before joining the CBI, she held senior positions in the Delhi Police and became the first Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) of Shahdara. During her tenure, she worked on establishing the district’s policing framework following its creation.

She also led operations targeting drug networks and illegal gambling activities while focusing on crime-prevention measures.

Later, as DCP of North Delhi, she oversaw security arrangements for major events, including Independence Day celebrations at the Red Fort and Delhi University elections.

Community-focused policing initiatives

Beyond investigations, Ms Prasad has been associated with community-focused programmes involving women’s self-defence, youth development, cyber safety and drug de-addiction.

During her CBI tenure, she was also associated with several prominent investigations. Media reports have linked her to cases concerning businessman Vijay Mallya and the AgustaWestland helicopter deal.

Current role in Delhi Police

After completing her assignment with the CBI, Ms Prasad returned to the Delhi Police and took charge as Joint Commissioner of Police in the Economic Offences Wing.

The latest recognition adds to her career spanning investigations, policing and public service across several challenging assignments.

India News

Kharge, Rahul Gandhi skip Independence Day event for 2nd straight year

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi skipped the 80th Independence Day celebrations at the Red Fort for the second consecutive year.

Published

20 hours ago

August 15, 2026

APNLive Desk

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi skipped the 80th Independence Day celebrations at Delhi’s Red Fort for the second consecutive year.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the Independence Day celebrations at the historic venue on Saturday.

The absence of the two senior Congress leaders comes amid strained relations between the ruling party and the Opposition, which further deteriorated during the Monsoon Session of Parliament that concluded on Thursday.

2024 seating controversy

Rahul Gandhi had attended the Independence Day celebrations in 2024 but his seating arrangement triggered a controversy. The Congress leader, who holds the status of a Cabinet minister as Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, was seated in the second-last row during the ceremony at the Red Fort.

The Opposition had criticised the seating arrangement, calling it an insult to the people. The Defence Ministry, which organised the event, said the arrangement had been modified to accommodate Olympians at the venue.

According to protocol, the Leader of the Opposition is seated in the front row during ceremonial events.

Opposition-ruling party tensions

Relations between the government and the Opposition remained tense during the Monsoon Session, which ended on Thursday.

The session saw repeated clashes between the two sides, with both the Opposition and the ruling party blaming each other for the low productivity of Parliament.

The session began on July 20, with students marching towards Parliament on the first day. Twelve bills were passed during the session, while detailed discussion took place on only one legislation, concerning paper leaks.

The Congress, along with the Trinamool Congress and Samajwadi Party, also boycotted the customary tea party hosted by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla after the House was adjourned sine die.

India News

PM Modi’s Saptadhara Vision: 7 streams driving India’s next growth phase

PM Modi outlined “Shakti Ki Saptadhara”, identifying seven streams including manufacturing, farming, technology, defence, green energy and soft power.

Published

20 hours ago

August 15, 2026

APNLive Desk

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his Independence Day address from the Red Fort on Saturday, outlined “Shakti Ki Saptadhara”, describing seven key streams that he said can drive India’s next phase of growth and strengthen its journey towards self-reliance and development.

The seven streams identified by the Prime Minister are manufacturing, farming, technology, Gatishakti, Raksha Shakti, green and blue economy, and soft power.

Calling on the country to focus on these areas, PM Modi said the seven streams represent India’s strength and can help the country become more self-reliant.

Manufacturing as the engine of growth

PM Modi called manufacturing the first stream of Saptadhara and stressed the need to significantly strengthen the sector.

He said India needs to produce both components and complete products and should emerge as a key destination in global supply chains.

The Prime Minister highlighted cost, quality and scale as important factors for Indian manufacturers to compete globally. He also stressed the importance of attractive packaging and precision in manufacturing.

Farming and food processing

Agriculture and food processing were identified as the second stream.

PM Modi said global markets are increasingly accessible to Indian farmers and called for greater efforts to take agricultural products from farms to international markets.

He highlighted traditional foods, millets, spices, fruits and vegetables, saying these products should be developed into global brands.

Technology and innovation

Technology and innovation form the third stream of Saptadhara, according to PM Modi.

He highlighted areas such as data centres, robotics and emerging technologies, saying India should aim to become a hub for these sectors.

Referring to the country’s experience with UPI and Digital Public Infrastructure, PM Modi said India has already demonstrated its technological capabilities and must now take the next leap in next-generation communication technology.

He also spoke about the goal of Made-in-India 6G reaching across the country.

Gatishakti and faster connectivity

The fourth stream is Gatishakti, with the Prime Minister stressing the importance of speed and connectivity for India’s growth.

PM Modi called for greater emphasis on roads and expressways to support businesses and said the country needs seamless, high-speed connectivity.

He also highlighted high-speed rail connectivity between cities and port-led development as areas requiring greater focus.

Raksha Shakti and self-reliant defence

Defence is the fifth stream of Saptadhara.

PM Modi called for greater self-reliance in defence manufacturing and highlighted the need to develop advanced technologies in the sector.

He particularly stressed the importance of drone and counter-drone technology, saying India needs to invest in these areas.

The Prime Minister also said India should move beyond being a market for defence equipment and work towards becoming a global supplier by developing next-generation defence technologies.

Green and blue economy

Green energy forms the sixth stream of Saptadhara.

PM Modi called for greater innovation in green energy and said India should aim for global leadership in green hydrogen, renewable energy and energy storage while continuing to contribute solutions to global challenges.

He also highlighted opportunities in the Blue Economy, particularly in fisheries, coastal tourism and ocean technology, saying these areas can create new pathways for India’s growth.

Soft power

Soft power is the seventh stream identified by PM Modi.

He cited Yoga, handicrafts, films, animation, gaming, digital content and the creative sector as examples of India’s soft power.

The Prime Minister also highlighted India’s potential to attract global tourists and called for greater focus on the country’s tourism opportunities, including its national parks and other attractions.

With “Shakti Ki Saptadhara”, PM Modi outlined a broad growth framework covering manufacturing and agriculture, emerging technology, connectivity, defence, sustainable energy, the blue economy and India’s cultural and creative influence.