The Emergency
In June 1975, India's democratic foundations crumbled overnight. A state of Emergency descended like a suffocating fog, strangling press freedom and civil liberties alike. What followed was a descent into authoritarianism that still haunts the national conscience. Coomi Kapoor, working as a journalist at the time, found herself caught in the crosshairs of governmental vengeance. She witnessed firsthand the machinery of oppression as Gandhi, her son Sanjay, and their inner circle orchestrated a brutal campaign: families torn apart by forced sterilisations, thousands stripped of homes and dignity, and dissidents vanishing into detention cells. This unflinching account pulls no punches. It's part historical testimony, part personal reckoning. Kapoor reconstructs those nineteen months with visceral clarity, exposing both the casual cruelty and unexpected acts of resistance that defined the era. Part reportage, part memoir, the narrative grips you by revealing not just what happened, but what it felt like to live through the unravelling of democratic promise. Essential reading for anyone seeking to understand how fragile freedom truly is.
- Author: Coomi Kapoor
- Publisher: Penguin Books Limited
- Genre: Journalism & Media Studies
- ISBN: 978-0143426134
- Pages: 400 pages