‘Singhasan khali karo’: Shashi Tharoor invokes Dinkar’s poem on democracy amid Congress fight against Gyanesh Kumar. Today’s news
Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Monday invoked Ramdhari Singh’s iconic poem ‘Dinkar’ ‘Janatantra Ka Janma’ amid controversy over police deployment in the nation; ca (ital) during protests against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar.
Tharoor’s sharing of the poem ‘Dinkar’s ‘The Birth of Democracy’ carries a clear political resonance as it comes on a day when the opposition bloc INDIA is holding a protest march in the streets of the national capital against ‘violence’ by the Delhi Police and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers used violence against students and women during a protest against the CJP, Chianesh, and demanded the resignation of the CJP.
“Poem of the day: As Ramdhari Singh wrote ‘Dinkar’ in his iconic poem ‘Janatantra Ka Janma’ (Birth of Democracy),” Tharoor wrote in a post on X, sharing the poem in Hindi with an English translation.
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Tharoor shared Dinkar’s 1952 poem “Janatantra Ka Janma”, translated as “Birth of Democracy”. The poem celebrates democracy and the political awakening of the common people.
Tharoor shared the poem as the INDIA bloc prepared a protest march against the police response to demonstrations demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. His message that sovereignty belongs to the people had a post-political resonance.
The line means “Release the throne”. In the poem, he expresses that people can demand power from those who hold positions of authority.
The CJP and opposition parties have demanded Kumar’s resignation, citing alleged irregularities in the functioning of the Election Commission, especially during a special intensive revision of electoral rolls.
Tharoor described the deployment as “war-like” and said the youth deserved better than an “unannounced” emergency. He linked the comparison to concerns about political expression.
The poem “Janatantra Ka Janma” written in 1952 celebrates the advent of democracy and the political awakening of the common people. Its central message is that sovereignty belongs to the people, not to those in positions of power.
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The opposition has rallied against the Election Commission and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the functioning of the Election Commission, especially during the controversial Special Intensive Review (SIR) of electoral rolls.
“But earthquakes happen and tornadoes appear. When men raise their brows in rage, Stand back, listen to the thundering sounds of the chariot of time, Abdicate the throne, for men come to claim it,” the Congress leader wrote.
Tharoor attacked Modi Govt
Earlier, Tharoor hit the Union Government led by Narendra ModiHe claims that Delhi witnessed “warlike deployment” during the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protest on Saturday. Tharoor, a Member of Parliament, said GenZ deserved better than an “undeclared” emergency.
Tharoor also tagged Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 2015 post about it Emergencyand said, “Thanks for teaching many of the same lessons to today’s youth, Modiji!”
In a June 2015 post, Prime Minister Modi said how personally the Emergency brought back many memories. “As youngsters, we learned a lot during the anti-Emergency movement,” he said.
In another post, Tharoor wrote: “As I said this morning, our GenZ deserves better than an undeclared EmerGenZ,”
The Emergency in India lasted for 21 months from 1975 to 1977, when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi declared a state of emergency across India, citing internal and external threats to the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other top BJP leaders often used the Emergency to target the Congress party.
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June 25, 2025 marks the 50th anniversary of the declaration of Emergency in 1975. The Modi government marks the day as “Samvidhan Hatya Diwas” to commemorate the sacrifices and suspension of constitutional rights during the 21-month emergency period.
“Give up the throne because people are coming to claim it.
Combining ‘Emergency’ with ‘Gen Z’, Tharoor evoked authoritarian associations of the 1975–77 Emergency, while suggesting that young Indians today face restrictions on their political expression.
