History

Indian Express Blank Editorial: Emergency 1975 History

On 28 June 1975, three days after the Emergency was proclaimed, The Indian Express left a section of its editorial page blank rather than run government-censor…

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JP MOVEMENT

The JP Movement Challenges the Government

Student unrest in Gujarat and Bihar fed into a broader opposition campaign led by Jayaprakash Narayan against the Indira Gandhi government, with The Indian Express incre…

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COURT VERDICT

Allahabad High Court Finds Indira Gandhi Guilty

The Allahabad High Court found Indira Gandhi guilty of electoral malpractice tied to her 1971 election, prompting an appeal to the Supreme Court and starting the chain o…

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EMERGENCY DECLARED

Emergency Proclaimed Under Article 352

President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed signed the Proclamation of Emergency late on 25 June 1975, citing "internal disturbance" -- wording the 44th Amendment would later replace.

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PRE-CENSORSHIP

Pre-Censorship Imposed on the Press

Newspapers were required to submit material to national and regional censors for clearance before publication, adding a new link to the ordinary editorial chain.

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BLANK EDITORIAL

The Indian Express Publishes the Blank Editorial

The paper resumed publication and left its editorial page blank rather than run censor-cleared copy. Proprietor Ramnath Goenka backed the protest; editor Kuldip Nayar la…

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CENSORS RESPOND

Censors Ban Blank Spaces and Quotations

After the tactic was noticed, censors ruled that newspapers could not use blank editorial spaces or substitute quotations from famous personalities either -- closing the…

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EMERGENCY ENDS

Emergency Withdrawn; Janata Party Takes Power

General elections on 16-20 March 1977 saw Congress lose heavily in the north; the Janata Party won, Morarji Desai became Prime Minister on 24 March, and the Emergency wa…

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CONSTITUTIONAL FIX

44th Amendment Replaces "Internal Disturbance"

The 44th Constitutional Amendment Act, 1978 replaced "internal disturbance" with the narrower "armed rebellion" as an Emergency ground, and the Press Council of India wa…

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