Violence in Bengal a threat to democracy — Advani

India had made a success of democracy in the past 50 years except for the emergency period when scores of leaders were put behind bars during the period, he said.

Recounting the moments of turmoil during the the emergency period, Advani said that “the amount of injustice that many leaders were subjected to was unknown even during the British rule”.

Despite its widespread poverty and the vast number of people living below the poverty line, India could hold on its democracy due to the basic concept of tolerance that was practised in every field, including religion and politics, he said.

The divergent views in the field of spirituality was a pointed indication of the high level of tolerance present among the Indians, Advani added.

Pointing to the period in western history where scores of scientists were sentenced to gruesome punishment for spelling out the scientific truth, Advani said in India, however, the freedom to express divergent views always continued to exist.

Recollecting an interview with a Canadian TV crew regarding India’s democracy, he said he had then remarked that it was the sincere dedication of the people towards democracy that has helped it withstand various onslaughts, including the clamping of emergency.

In his address, laced with humour, Advani recounted how he was put behind bars at Bangalore and where letters addressed to him came with a note `C/O Indira Gandhi’.

“Those who have not witnessed those times will never really understand the experience”, he said applauding writers who tried to capture these trying moments in history.

Lauding the cultural contribution of Gujarat to India, Advani said he was first introduced to Hindi through Gujarati, where he studied about great works of various writers.