There won’t be another Emergency

In 1975, India under Indira Gandhi declared an Emergency to enable arbitrary actions by the state, suspending all fundamental rights of citizens.

Today, those same powers exist under regular law. Over time, every ruling government has passed laws—like IPC 124A, AFSPA, the now-defunct POTA, NSA, UAPA, Sec 144/IT Act, PMLA, Sec 132/Income Tax, and FCRA—that curtail civil liberties.

Take UAPA: a person can be jailed without proof, based only on accusation, and held indefinitely without trial. No trial means no chance to prove innocence. The idea of suspending rights under an Emergency is redundant—rights are already suspended.

What our parents lived through for twenty-one months, we’re living every day. The frog has been slowly boiled to ignore the changes¹. The bird born in a cage thinks flying is illegal. The elephant tied with a weak chain believes it’s not strong enough to break free—that’s what the next generation will feel too.

What was once used sparingly is now used routinely against ordinary citizens. An emergency is no longer needed. It’s the norm. Hence, there won’t be another Emergency.

Below is the list of laws that curtail our civil liberties. These are the ones I know. There could be many more.

1. UAPA (Unlawful Activities Prevention Act) – a much worse successor to POTA, Jail without charge; dissent = terrorism.
2. NSA (National Security Act) – Detention without trial for 12 months.
3. AFSPA (Armed Forces Special Powers Act) – Military immunity; shoot/arrest without warrant.
4. Sedition (IPC 124A) – Criticizing govt = jail. Still misused.
5. Temporary Suspension of Telecom Services (Amendment) Rules, 2020 – Internet shutdowns with little oversight. to POTA
6. PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) – The accused must prove innocence (reverses burden). ED has sweeping powers.
7. Income Tax Search & Seizure (Sec 132) – There is no need for public disclosure of reasons by department. Assets can be seized first, explained later.
8. FCRA (Foreign Contribution Regulation Act) – Limits NGO funding; used to silence civil society.
9. Demonetization (via RBI Act 26(2)) – Massive economic disruption with no accountability. Arbitrary limit on cash ownership.
10. Mandatory Aadhaar Linking – The Aadhaar bill was passed as a financial bill. Huge surveillance concerns. Excludes people from welfare if not linked.
11. Various Goonda Acts at state level- generally jail without proof.
    1. Tamil Nadu Goondas Act ,Tamil Nadu Prevention of Dangerous Activities of Bootleggers, Drug Offenders, Goondas, Immoral Traffic Offenders, Forest Offenders, Sand Offenders, Slum-Grabbers and Video Pirates Act, 1982 – Used on bootleggers, drug offenders, but also journalists and protesters.
    2. Karnataka Goondas Act, Karnataka Prevention of Dangerous Activities of Bootleggers, Drug-offenders, Gamblers, Goondas, [IMMORAL TRAFFIC OFFENDERS, SLUM-GRABBERS AND VIDEO OR AUDIO PIRATES] ACT, 1985 – Extended over time to include cybercrime, sexual offenders, even social media posts.
    3. Uttar Pradesh Control of Goondas Act, 1970 – Allows externment (banishing people from a district). Vague terms like “public tranquility” are used.
    4. Maharashtra Prevention of Dangerous Activities Act (MPDA), The Maharashtra Prevention Of Dangerous Activities Of Slumlords, Bootleggers, Drug-Offenders, Dangerous Persons And Video Pirates Act, 1981 – Similar provisions. Used on political dissenters.