​Going ahead with his monthly radio broadcast even as he is on a visit to the US, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday recalled the declaration of Emergency on June 25, 1975, as “a dark night that no devotee of democracy can ever forget.”

“The country had virtually become a prison. The voice of the Opposition had been smothered….The press was completely muffled,” he said without naming the Congress, adding that “Democracy is not only a system. It is our culture...”

Modi’s comments come at a time when the Opposition has been accusing his government of an “undeclared Emergency’. Reacting to his radio broadcast, CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury tweeted: “Right to Life, Liberty: essence of democracy. Even without declaration of Emergency, these basics violated for deprived, minorities & dalits”.

Addressing the nation through his 33rd “Mann Ki Baat” broadcast, the Prime Minister also highlighted India’s achievements in space science, referring to the recent launch of 30 nano satellites with the ‘Cartosat-2 Series Satellite’ by the Indian Space Research Organisation.

“With India’s Nano Satellite Mission, we will get a lot of help in the field of agriculture, farming, and dealing with natural disasters,” he said.

Modi also spoke about the advantages of the Government E-Marketplace (GEM) system for small and micro entrepreneurs for selling their products to the government.

“This is a great new system. Whoever wants to supply any item to the government, small things such as electric bulbs, dustbins, brooms, chairs and tables, they can register themselves. They can mention the quality of the goods, the rate at which they sell, and it is compulsory for the government departments to visit the site and see whether the supplier can supply the goods at reasonable prices without compromising on the quality. And then the orders can be placed. That is how the middlemen can be removed from the system,’ he added.

Greeting people on the occasion of the Lord Jagannath’s Rath Yatra and Eid-ul –Fitr, Modi said: “Let us come together and take inspiration from these holy festivals and share their joyous treasures, and take the nation forward,’ he said.

Speaking on the holy month of Ramzan, the Prime Minister, without any mention of the recent incidents of public lynching and death of some Muslims in North India, spoke of an “‘inspiring incident” in a village in Uttar Pradesh where residents of a Muslim-majority village had got together to construct toilets during Ramzan this year and even returned the money they had got from the government.

“I felicitate the residents of Mubarakpur for transforming the pious occasion of Ramzan into an opportunity for the welfare of society on. Each and everything about them is inspiring,” he said.

Modi also spoke about the contribution of youth to sports, while congratulating badminton player Kidambi Srikanth for winning Australian Open Super Series.

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