Haryana govt hikes pension of freedom fighters, their dependents and Emergency 'sufferers'

Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Tuesday announced a substantial hike in the monthly pension of freedom fighters, their dependents as well as the Emergency "sufferers" and the Matribhasha Satyagrahis. Saini said the pension of freedom fighters and their dependents has been increased from Rs 25,000 to Rs 40,000.

The pension of Emergency "sufferers" and the Matribhasha Satyagrahis has been increased to Rs 20,000.

The new pension rates will be applicable with effect from July 1, Saini posted on X.


The announcements come at a time when Haryana goes to polls in October.

Notably, former Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had in October last year announced an increase in pension amount for 'Matribhasha Satyagrahis', who took part in the 'Hindi Aandolan' of 1957, and the Emergency "sufferers" from Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000.

In 1957, a number of people from Hindi-speaking parts of erstwhile Punjab launched a crusade for the honour, promotion and implementation of their mother tongue. They are known as 'Matribhasha Satyagrahis'.

Nearly seven years ago, the BJP government in Haryana had decided to give a monthly pension to those residents of the state who were "sufferers" and were imprisoned during the days of Emergency between June 1975 to March 1977.

Meanwhile, the chief minister paid tributes to the freedom fighters and said that they made innumerable sacrifices for the sake of the country's freedom.

He also paid tributes to the 'satyagrahis', who fought during the Emergency to restore democracy and uphold the spirit of the Constitution, according to an official statement.

Saini launched a sharp attack on the Congress on the 49th anniversary of the Emergency.

The name of the horrific attempt to imprison the public sentiment of India was 'Emergency', which exposed the character of the Congress before the country and the world. 'Black Day' in the history of independent India, Saini said in another post in Hindi on X.

"I salute all those Satyagrahis who, despite facing terrible tortures, opposed the Emergency and preserved the democratic values," he said.