Emergency: A dark chapter in the history of India. (The T…

on the orders of Indira Gandhi, with the signing of President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, the Emergency was imposed on the country and suspended the fundamental rights of all citizens, which shook the nation's democratic foundations.

This emergency ended on 21 March 1977.

In 19 months, lakhs were imprisoned and tortured unnecessarily.

Thousands of column inches have been dedicated to articulating the horrors of Emergency, and the lessons it holds for future generations.

Among those who stood tallest at the time, but paid the ultimate price for her principled dissent, was writer, activist, producer and actress Snehalatha Reddy (1932– 20 January 1977)

She was known for her works in Kannada cinema,Kannada theatre and Telugu cinema, Telugu theatre

Married to poet, mathematician and director Pattabhi Rama Reddy, the couple were devoted socialists, dedicated to the cause of renowned activist and freedom fighter Dr Rammanohar Lohia.

Considering their affiliation to Lohia’s principles,both Sneha and Pattabhi spoke out against

the tyrannical Indira Gandhi regime and the proclamation of Emergency.

George Fernandes was then a young trade union leader and was at the forefront of the underground movement.

Actress Snehalatha Reddy whose fault was nothing. But it cost her dearly to befriend a politician

The actress was subjected to immense atrocities only because she was a friend of George Fernandes, whom the police were trying to nab during the Emergency.

Picked up by the police on May 2, 1976, she was booked under the draconian MISA (Maintenance of Internal Security Act).

She was arrested along with Fernandes in the Baroda Dynamite case, even though the final charge sheet did not contain her name. She was guilty by mere association.

At a time when all fundamental rights were suspended, She was held without trial for eight months in

Bangalore Central Jail, enduring regular torture and was subjected to inhumane conditions. Despite having chronic asthma she received irregular treatment and on two occasions even went into an asthmatic coma.

The atrocities against Snehalatha Reddy have been

mentioned in Kuldeep Nayyar’s Book “Emergency Retold”.

It is written in the book that when the actress was jailed,she was in a cell in which only one person could live. In that cell there was a hole in d corner at the place of the urinal and at the other end there was a wrought

iron door. She spent many nights sleeping on the floor during her imprisonment. For the entire 8 months, Snehlata was tortured endlessly in a fake case.

Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Lal Krishna Advani, who were lodged in a cell next to them in jail, later told that during their

imprisonment they could hear a woman screaming. It was later revealed that she was Kannada actress Snehalatha.

Despite the horrors of prison, never did Snehalatha let her spirit waver. She fought for prisoner rights, seeking an end to the horrible beatings women

inmates would suffer and improving the quality of food.

While in jail, Snehalatha Reddy had maintained a diary which was published by the Karnataka Human Rights Committee in 1977 in a compilation titled A Prison Diary.

Snehalatha writes:

“As soon as a woman comes in,

she is stripped naked in front of everyone else. When a human being is sentenced, he or she is punished enough. Must the human body be degraded and humiliated as well? Who is responsible for these perverse methods?”

(Source: The Concerned For Working Children, Nandana Reddy)

Her frail health worsened due to solitary confinement. She was eventually released on parole on January 15, 1977. Sadly, five days later (20 January 1977) she passed away as a result of chronic asthma and a debilitating lung infection. Not receiving regular medical treatment

for her condition, along with enduring all the physical hardships,had wrecked her health. She paid the ultimate price for her dissent—Death.

Source- https://t.co/dJqORzjAEe