By IANS
New Delhi : The main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Sunday expressed concern over declaration of emergency in Pakistan, adding that developments in the neighbouring country reminded many Indians of the years of internal emergency here.
“The BJP has always believed that the struggle for democracy in Pakistan is inseparable from the struggle against terrorism, which is backed by religious terrorism. The party conveys its deep solidarity with the people of Pakistan in this hour of struggle in restoration of democracy and the rule of law,” BJP general secretary Arun Jaitley said.
He said that for the Indians, developments of the past 24 hours in Pakistan were a replica of what India had gone through during the internal emergency (1975-1977).
Stating that the world has repeatedly witnessed democratic constitutions being subverted in the name of proclamation of emergency in order to institutionalise personal power through totalitarianism, Jaitley said, “(then prime minister) Indira Gandhi used attempts at destabilizing the country as an alibi. It is not surprising that General Pervez Musharraf has used terrorism and judicial encroachment into the executive domain to highlight the threat of destabilization.”
Referring to the emergencies imposed by Gandhi in India, Musharraf in Pakistan and Adolf Hitler in Germany, he said, “The common thread in these three emergencies is that there is an inbuilt desire in the proclaimer of the emergency to perpetuate personal power, usurp absolute power, eliminate all possibilities of losing that power and intolerance towards any form of criticism.
“The Indian nation displayed a great resilience in fighting the emergency. We hope for a similar success of our Pakistani counterparts,” Jaitley said.