checkthis / Fact checks / History
Indira Gandhi claimed the 1975 Emergency was constitutional?
Checked 13 Oct 2026 · Updated 15 Oct 2026
The Reel accurately shares genuine archival footage of Indira Gandhi's September 1975 interview with the BBC. As seen in the video, she defended the Emergency, claimed she was functioning within the constitution, and cited Abraham Lincoln's suspension of habeas corpus to justify her actions.
The Reel we checked
@bbcnewsindia
At midnight on 25 June 1975, India - a young democracy and the world’s largest - froze. Then prime minister Indira Gandhi had just declared a nationwide…
Watch the Reel on Instagram ↗What we checked
✓
Indira Gandhi claimed in 1975 that she had not taken any extra powers and was functioning absolutely within the constitution.
✓
Indira Gandhi claimed in 1975 that legal immunity had just been extended to the vice president and the prime minister of India.
✓
Indira Gandhi claimed that Abraham Lincoln once asked, "Do you want the Union or habeas corpus?" during American history.
?
Indira Gandhi defended her decision to impose the 1975 Emergency in an interview with journalist Paul Saltzman in September 1975.No reliable source found for this yet.
Does this look wrong?
Related checks
Partly true
Mahatma Gandhi's intimate letters and sleeping arrangements prove he was gay@surjyam.jpeg · History · Trick: Accuses by asking · 15 Oct 2026
No proof yet
Baba Lal Das was murdered for opposing the VHP@deshdasha__ · History · 14 Oct 2026
Exaggerated
The RSS actively collaborated with British colonial rule@js_vlogs___ · History · 13 Oct 2026
Check a Reel yourself
Send any Reel to @checkthis.chat on Instagram. You get a reply like this in a minute or two.
Send a Reel