Bandaru Dattatraya recalls Emergency days

Hyderabad: Himachal Pradesh Governor Bandaru Dattatraya on Friday recalled the emergency imposed during Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's regime. He said he was arrested from Bellampalli, which is famous for coal mines and was lodged in Chanchalguda central Jail.

While in jail he got news of his elder brother, Manik Prabh's, death on September 17, 1976. He was allowed escort parole to attend the last rites.

Dattatreya got a month's conditional parole from jail three days after death of his brother. Every morning he had to reach the Afzalganj police station to mark his attendance and to show his face to the station in-charge. He struggled during the Emergency days, as the police monitored his every movement

The senior BJP senior leader said he visited a library after his daily ritual of police station visit. He read books in jail and developed deep love for books in the library, during his parole days. Dattatreya said he read about the impact of repeated invasions and foreign rule on the Indian culture and traditions. These books toughened his resolve to fight for rights of the poor and to dedicate his life to nation-building.

When he was in jail his mother used to visit regularly. But an officer always sat near them listening to the conversation. The police and government officials used to approach relatives of those who were arrested during Emergency and put pressure on them to convince the activists to give statements in favour of the government.