New Delhi: Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi has launched her sharpest attack on the Narendra Modi government in years, saying “great damage” has been done to India’s democracy and institutions over the last 12 years and alleging that “many elections have been stolen”. The remarks, in an interview with The Hindu published on Saturday, come three days before the release of her memoir, Belonging: A Journey of Love, on November 10.
Within hours, the BJP hit back, accusing Gandhi of trying to justify the Emergency imposed by former prime minister Indira Gandhi in 1975.
“Great damage” to democracy, she says
In the interview, conducted by The Hindu’s N. Ram, Gandhi said the damage of the last 12 years would not be easy to undo. “Over the last twelve years, great damage has been done to the fabric of our country, our democracy and our institutions. Even after this government goes, it will take time to restore our systems back to health and great effort from political parties,” she said.
Gandhi argued that neither the Congress nor any other opposition party has had a level playing field since the Modi government came to power. “Take into account the complete stranglehold they have on all institutions, especially the Election Commission, their control of mainstream media, their money power and their exploitation of religion,” she said. She added that she was still optimistic, saying people were beginning to feel restless and recognise the damage.
On elections, she was blunt: “What is more, it has been amply proved in recent months that many elections have been stolen, and people are now more aware of it.”
Her remarks land in the middle of the Congress campaign against the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls, which the party calls “vote chori”. The Congress has been demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The Commission has rejected the charge.
The Emergency passage that drew the fire
Much of the BJP’s response focused on what Gandhi said about the Emergency. She conceded that democratic rights were curtailed and habeas corpus was suspended during the Emergency, which ran from June 25, 1975 to March 21, 1977, but maintained that it was done through constitutional mechanisms.
She also pushed back against the view that her brother-in-law Sanjay Gandhi alone was responsible for the excesses of the period, saying several senior colleagues of Indira Gandhi had also put pressure on the then prime minister.
The memoir, published by HarperCollins India, runs to 544 pages. It recounts her marriage to Rajiv Gandhi, her introduction to her mother-in-law Indira Gandhi, and her early years adjusting to life in India.
How the BJP responded
BJP Rajya Sabha MP Tarun Chugh led the counterattack, saying Gandhi was unable to acknowledge India’s development and its emergence as a global power under the BJP-led NDA government. “If you take off your Italian lenses, you will see India clearly,” he said.
Party spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari accused her of trying to justify the Emergency and project Indira Gandhi as a victim. Writing on X, he said her “PR exercise cannot hide the truth: Indira Gandhi imposed emergency, and Rajiv Gandhi carried forward that legacy by his famous comment, ‘Ek Bada Ped Girta Hai to Dharti Hilti Hai’, justifying 1984 massacre of Sikhs.”
Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal reminded her of the Emergency years, when thousands of senior leaders were jailed and journalists silenced. “She ought to remember that era as well,” he said. Union Minister Giriraj Singh said the Congress has not held power in nine states for 40 years: “This is the same Congress that imposed the Emergency and silenced the people.”
Former Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said he had expected an honest account from someone who led the Congress and chaired the UPA government for 10 years, but found “a bundle of dishonesty, with more political rhetoric than genuine memories”.
Why the row matters now
The timing is no accident. The interview was published three days before the memoir’s release, and the Congress has kept the heat on the Election Commission for weeks over the voter roll revision. Gandhi’s words give the party’s campaign its most high-profile voice yet.
The exchange is also a reminder of how the Emergency still shapes Indian politics 51 years on.
FAQs
What did Sonia Gandhi say about elections?
She told The Hindu that “many elections have been stolen” and that it has been “amply proved in recent months”.
When is her memoir releasing?
Belonging: A Journey of Love, published by HarperCollins India, releases in India on Tuesday, November 10, 2026. It runs to 544 pages.
What did she say about the Emergency?
She conceded democratic rights were curtailed and habeas corpus suspended between June 25, 1975 and March 21, 1977, but said it was done constitutionally.
How did the BJP respond?
Leaders including Tarun Chugh, Pradeep Bhandari, Arjun Ram Meghwal and Giriraj Singh accused her of justifying the Emergency, with Chugh telling her to remove her “Italian lenses”.
Who interviewed Sonia Gandhi?
N. Ram of The Hindu, in an interview published on Saturday, November 7, 2026, ahead of the memoir’s release.
The memoir, Belonging: A Journey of Love, will be out on Tuesday. The political row around it has already begun.
