‘Sonia and Rajiv had no role in the Emergency’
do not think Rajiv Gandhi at that stage had any influence canada goose store on his mother.
You canadagooseonsales.com know, clamping down on civil liberties and arresting people affected a certain number of people. Most were not affected. Surely, most were living in a state of fear. So that was one aspect of it.
But what really affected the people, and eventually Indira Gandhi, was the sterilisation drive. She lost so badly in north India because of these drives and the demolition drives which were meant to beautify areas.
Those Canada Goose online were carried out by (Indira son) Sanjay Gandhi as part of his five point programme and they were done so ruthlessly, so callously. Like, for example, people from Old Delhi were removed from their houses without canada goose coats any notices, without any warning. I mean from their slums, whatever they were, in canada goose black friday sale the middle of the monsoon they were taken to new settlements and colonies far away from their place of work or from anywhere. This was in the pouring rain and in the new place like Khichdipur, Kalyanpuri all of them were settlement colonies set up by Sanjay.
Canada Goose online I think that canada goose deals impacted the common people the most, because they were not affected about what was being done to the political leadership. I Canada Goose Outlet mean, also this sense of fear: you never knew in the Emergency if somebody raked up something against you and you could get into trouble. Canada Goose online
canada goose uk outlet You have spoken about how Sanjay Gandhi influenced Indira Gandhi. In the Sanjay Gandhi chapter you have written about many instances of the Sanjay Indira relationship. But what exactly did Rajiv Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi do in her house? Did Sonia influence her? canada goose uk outlet
Canada Goose Outlet I do not think Rajiv Gandhi at that stage had any influence on his canada goose mother. In my book, the chapter on Indira Gandhi mentions certain letters which have not been published, yet. I mean, they have been published by me in certain newspapers but otherwise nobody had access to them. Canada Goose Outlet
And those letters show that Indira Gandhi relied totally on Sanjay and she looked upon him oddly enough as a dependable son. While she was worried about Rajiv canada goose outlet Gandhi and felt that he was not sure of his future, which was ironical because most people would have seen it the other way around.
cheap Canada Goose The letters are written by Indira Gandhi to Sanjay Gandhi. Rajiv had got a feedback of the negative side of the Emergency. But Rajiv was basically an apolitical person at that stage and a pilot. Though he must have registered caution because (family friend and cultural czar) Pupul Jayakar points out in her book that on the day Indira Gandhi lost the election in 1977, Rajiv turned to Pupul and said, will never forgive Sanjay for what he has done to my mother. buy canada goose jacket cheap I had warned on several occasions that what she was doing in Emergency was going to get us into a lot of trouble. But Sonia was for several months quietly employed in a cushy job in Maruti Technical Services Private limited (not the main car company but the private company owned by the family). cheap Canada Goose
buy canada goose jacket cheap So she did not have any particular role during the Emergency? buy canada goose jacket cheap
canada goose clearance sale When you look back, people who played villains eventually joined the mainstream and those who were heroes had their credibility somewhat corroded. Do you agree? canada goose clearance sale
The last chapter of the book shows where the main characters of the Emergency ended up.
canada goose black friday sale Many of them ended up on the opposite side of the fence from where they used to be the members of the opposition, and joined the Congress. Many of those who claimed to be such staunch followers of Sanjay Gandhi and Indira Gandhi deserted them immediately once they lost power. canada goose black friday sale
Siddhartha Shankar Ray was one of those. But yet, ironically, people forget it. Rajiv Gandhi Canada Goose Jackets did not seem to have held it against Ray and made him governor of Punjab, despite the fact that his mother never spoke to Ray.
Canada Goose Parka After the Emergency, he met her one time during the Shah Commission hearing (on the Emergency excesses) and he said superciliously, hope you are looking fit and good She said, to you and never spoke to him again. Canada Goose Parka
Canada Goose sale You know this balance between the Congress and canadian goose jacket the Gandhi family. The Emergency did not erode the importance of the Gandhi family to the Congress. This is a very interesting aspect to it, and even Rahul Gandhi is likely to take over the party soon. Canada Goose sale
cheap canada goose uk After the election of 1977, the Congress and most of those close to Indira split the party and threw her out, basically. So she formed her own party and showed that it was she who had the following. She was the one who connected with the people because the Congress party which was headed by Swaran Singh was totally sidelined. cheap canada goose uk
canada goose factory sale It had a lot of MPs around 1977 but just disappeared in 1980, whereas the Indira Gandhi Congress, which people were sceptical would stay, was the one which was the real winner. canada goose factory sale
canada goose coats on sale Even during Canada Goose Parka the Janata period, her party won the elections in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. She herself won from Chikmagalur and in 1980 she came back with a thumping majority. History was re made because of her charisma, not because of her family. She is the one who has given this aura of family to the Gandhis. canada goose coats on sale
Do you think the family remains indispensable for the Congress party?
It seems to me Canada Goose sale that without the family the Congress does not stand for anything much. I mean, the charisma and appeal come from the great respect for this family for whatever reason.
canada goose coats How do you see the current government led by Narendra Modi? Does it have certain lessons to learn from this event? canada goose coats
uk canada goose outlet Well, L K Advani has said it (smiles). I do not agree with him totally but there is no doubt that politicians always canada goose coats on sale try to concentrate power in their canada goose clearance sale own hands and to take control of the various wings of democracy, whether it is the media or their own parties in the government. uk canada goose outlet
canada goose store And while it is very difficult to have an Emergency type situation throughout the country imposed from Delhi now, but in certain states and areas Emergency like conditions prevail because of local influences and local leaders tendencies. canada goose store
If Advani said it with reference to Modi, that only he can answer. Whether he means the Modi government or not, but any canada goose clearance powerful political leader who tries to a certain degree to exercise power forcefully will find it difficult now.