Constitution me emergency provisions rare extreme situations ke liye banaye gaye – war, external aggression, internal armed rebellion type threats. Emergency ke dauran fundamental rights pe restrictions aa sakti hain, Centre–State power balance temporarily shift ho sakta hai.
Past misuse ke baad courts zyada alert ho chuke hain. Ab question yeh hota hai: kya emergency declaration genuine threat pe based thi, ya political convenience ke liye use ki gayi? Judicial review yahi check karta hai.
Courts usually security matters me fully substitute judgment nahi karte, lekin they can see:
- Kya materials completely absent ya absurd the,
- Kya procedural safeguards follow huye,
- Kya post-emergency steps disproportionate the.
Emergency koi magic key nahi jisse Constitution side pe rakh diya jaye. Democratic systems expect ki even hardest times me bhi kuch basic structure – rule of law, judiciary ka minimum space – intact rahe.
