Even today there is a lot of discussion about emergency in the country. Political debates happen, but in the minds of some of the agitators present at that time, even today that black day is printed in the same way as they had seen and felt. One of them is Srinivas, an agitator and senior journalist associated with the JP movement, who shared with us the memory of the old days. He tells that his family used to live in Muzaffarpur, Bihar while he was making Bettiah his base. 25 june 1975 Emergency was imposed but he got information about it the next day.

Srinivas Told that he 28 June A matter of. My father was listening to BBC news. At the same time he was shocked to hear a news and came running to me and said that Emergency has been imposed in the country. JP has been arrested. He said that at that time I did not know much about the Emergency. I ran towards the market and picked up the newspaper. After reading the newspaper, it became clear that what to do and what not to do in the country. He said that because we were associated with the JP movement, this news made our heart beat faster.

)There was a picture of Indira Gandhi at Srinivas’s house

Refreshing the memories, Srinivas says that there was a picture of Indira Gandhi in our house. That too in the frame… On hearing about the emergency, blood started running fast in our veins. We took down the picture of Indira Gandhi from the wall, although father stopped me and my brother..but where were we going to stop. We took the picture off the wall.

The movement was obsessed So how would you listen to your father

Agitator Srinivas told that he I had already gone to jail four times (once under ‘MISA’), so his father was more worried. Father said that if he goes to jail this time, he will not be able to leave soon. But we were passionate about the movement, so how could I listen to my father… I immediately left for Bettiah from Muzaffarpur. Here I met my friends. 28 We held a meeting on June, that too in the graveyard..all friends there to make further strategy. Arrived. At the same time a pamphlet came in our hands. Motihari bandh was seen written in this pamphlet. We have also decided that We will declare Bettiah Bandh on June.

46 On June we set out to get Bettiah closed

Senior journalist Srinivas further told that we wrote Betiya instead of Motihari in the pamphlet and started distributing the pamphlet all over the city. On June we set out to get Bettiah closed. Our slogans of Bettiah Bandh created a stir among the people. People started closing their shops, but only then we reached near a shop. That shopkeeper opposed the bandh. After this protest, the shopkeeper had a fight with us. He told that after this he reached a school. There however even after an argument with the Principal 11 to 06 Children joined them.

Close In the midst of getting it done, the police reached there. Srinivas says that he saw the police and went towards a paan shop. When the police started coming towards them, they started running but the police chased them and caught them. Srinivas was arrested on June while agitating. He was put in jail the same day. After this, the number of agitators kept increasing with him in the jail. After being in jail for about 11 months, he was released from jail.