Question

Emergency in India was declared by
A) Mahatma Gandhi
B) Sanjay Gandhi
C) Indira Gandhi
D) None of these

Answer 1

Hint: In India, "The Emergency'' refers to a 21-month period from 1975 to 1977. The Emergency effectively started from 25 June 1975 till its withdrawal on 21 March 1977. Although declared by thr PM of India, the emergency was officially issued by President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed under Article 352 of the Constitution because of the prevailing "internal disturbance".

Complete answer: In the 1971 general elections, Indira Gandhi became Prime Minister of India with a thumping majority. Congress grasped 352 Lok Sabha seats out of 518. Though the Emergency came into effect on the intervening night of June 25 and 26, the foundation for it was already laid on June 12, 1975 itself.
Requirement of the Emergency: Due to the war with pakistan and additional challenges of drought and the 1973 oil crisis, the economy was in poor condition. The Government realised that the constant strikes and protests had paralysed the nation and hurt the economy of the country greatly. Siddhartha Shankar Ray who was the Chief Minister of West Bengal then, proposed to the prime minister to impose an "internal emergency". Under PM advice, President Ahmed approved the continuation of Emergency over every six months until the elections in 1977. The final decision to impose an emergency was declared by then Prime Minister Mrs. Indira Gandhi.

Elections of 1977: Fresh elections were called on 18 January 1977 by Indira Gandhi, and all the political prisoners were released, but the Emergency was officially ended on 23 March 1977.

Thus the correct option is C.

Note: Our President has the power to declare three types of emergencies in India — national, state and financial emergency. Till date, only 3 National Emergencies are declared so far under Article 352- in 1962, 1971 & 1975.