Lucknow, June 26 -- The BJP on Wednesday observed the 50th anniversary of the Emergency with a series of programmes across Uttar Pradesh. The party highlighted what it termed as the "suffering of democracy" during the 21-month period of Emergency imposed by the then Congress government in 1975. At the district level, the party held seminars and exhibitions portraying the suppression of democratic institutions, civil liberties, and press freedom during the Emergency. Through these events, the BJP said it sought to present the "painful outcry of democracy held hostage" to the public. Chief minister Yogi Adityanath addressed a seminar in Lucknow, while state BJP president Bhupendra Singh Chaudhary led an event in Moradabad. Deputy chief ministers Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak participated in similar seminars in Pratapgarh, Prayagraj, and Barabanki, respectively. Senior ministers and state BJP office-bearers also travelled across districts to engage with people on what the party described as the "dark chapter of Indian democracy." Speaking at the Moradabad seminar alongside Union minister Jitin Prasada, BJP state president Bhupendra Singh Chaudhary alleged that the Congress party, during the Emergency, had trampled democratic institutions, curbed press freedom, compromised judicial independence, and crushed fundamental rights....