London: The Sikh Federation (UK) has today asked why the mainstream media has turned a blind eye to the 40th anniversary of the State of Emergency in India and why they are not reporting that Margaret Thatcher refused to criticise Indira Gandhi.
The Sikh Federation (UK) has released material today through social media that is readily available to explain what exactly happen 40 years ago:
– Indira Gandhi declared a state of emergency after she was found guilty of misuse of government machinery for election purposes.
– 21 months of unlawful arrests, censorship of press & severe curtailment of civil liberties of millions in India.
– India officially became a dictatorship that led to the detention of thousands without charge, abuse & torture & forced sterilisation of over 8 million men.
– Many of Indira Gandhi’s political opponents were jailed, but the minority Sikh community led protests against the state of emergency and Gandhi would take revenge in 1984.
– Complete ban on anything critical of Indira Gandhi and her regime. The Government cut the power supply to newspapers & imprisoned journalists.
Bhai Amrik Singh, the Chair of the Sikh Federation (UK) [File Photo]
Bhai Amrik Singh said: ‘The mainstream media has a responsibility to explain what took place during the State of Emergency exactly 40 years ago.’
‘The British media should be more interested because Margaret Thatcher and Indira Gandhi were soul mates. Thatcher visited India as head of the Conservative Party during the State of Emergency and was supportive. Margaret Thatcher made no public criticism of the emergency.’
‘When Gandhi lost the elections after the State of Emergency she visited London in November 1978 and Thatcher urged her not to give up politics and to run again.’
‘The media should not simply try and airbrush this out of Indian history. The minority Sikh community stood up to Gandhi’s atrocities during the State of Emergency. She never forgot this and took her own revenge when she came to power in the 1980s.’
‘Indira Gandhi was responsible for the Genocide of the Sikhs in 1984 and Margaret Thatcher again directly supported her by providing military assistance to launch an army assault on the Sikhs’s holiest shrine in June 1984. She also did her best to silence British Sikhs, but the truth is now slowly emerging after more the 30 years.’