The Congress has severely criticised Sanjay Gandhi's coercive family planning experiment during the Emergency - calling it arbitrary and authoritarian.
The party has made it's view official by putting it down in a book to mark it's 125th anniversary.
For decades, Congress has preferred caution while discussing its Sanjay Gandhi years even though the Gandhi scion was roundly criticised for several of his policies.
It was his family planning policy of getting men forcibly sterilized that earned him the title of an autocrat.
For the first time ever, the congress has decided to break its silence on the issue. The book called 'The Congress and the making of the Indian nation' has Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee as its chief editor.
Released on the occasion of its 125 years celebration, it says," Over enthusiasm led to compulsion in enforcement of programmes like compulsory sterilisation and clearance of slums."
"Sanjay promoted slum clearance, anti dowry measures and promotion of literacy...but in an arbitrary and authoritarian manner. This led to much to the annoyance of the popular opinion."
While Congress never misses a chance to speak of Rajiv Gandhi's legacy, it has so far consistently steered clear of discussing or mentioning Sanjay Gandhi. His son Varun's decision to join the BJP made that silence more intense.
Interestingly in its 125th year, the party has made another departure by even including a chapter on Narasimha Rao in the book - a PM who has usually been the party's favourite fall guy.
0 comments:
Post a Comment