India, July 5 -- June 25, 1975 is unforgettable. Fifty years ago, the Emergency was declared in India ohn this very day. I was then a student at Banaras Hindu University (BHU), pursuing my postgraduate studies in Economics after graduating. I chose the subject because of the brilliant professors in the department- teachers who could simplify complex theories and relate them to rural life and household economics. My ambition was to become a teacher like them, to study further, and live a life devoted to knowledge. In those days, teachers were our role models-symbols of integrity, intellect, and inspiration.
But destiny had other plans. The Emergency slowly but surely altered the trajectory of my life. How and why it happened is difficult to...