Today I am going back to history, almost 100 years back. To be precise, I am referring to an incident which happened on 13th Apr 1919 in Amritsar during British Raj. The incident is known in history as
JALIANWALA BAGH MASSACRE
From the day World War 1 started, there had been an increasing civil unrest and resentment through out India, especially in the states of West Bengal & Punjab.It was due to the terrible repercussions of the war, like- inflation, heavy taxation, a huge number of dead and wounded soldiers that contributed immensely in uniting the nation against the British Rule. The worsening civil unrest led to the formation of Rowlatt Committee in 1919. The Rowlatt Act was a legislative act that allowed certain political cases to be tried without the presence of a jury and permitted internment of suspects without any trial.. The Act resulted in furious protests throughout the country. The unrest became worst, especially in Punjab.
There were demonstration held to demand the release of two popular leaders of independence movement. There were violent protest that resulted in burning of Town Hall and railway station, disruption of telegraphs and communication system. It resulted in many deaths which included few deaths of British officials. The British govt thus decided to place Punjab under Martial Law. Restrictions were placed on the civil liberties that banned the public gatherings and prohibited assembly of more than 4 people together.
On 13 April 1919, thousands of people were gathered at Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar, Punjab. This day marks the beginning of New Year for the Sikhs and is also celebrated as Baisakhi festival all over Punjab. People travel days to reach Punjab on this auspicious day to celebrate Baisakhi with their family and loved ones.
On the morning of Baisakhi, Colonel Reginald Dyer had announced the implementation of a curfew throughout Amritsar and a ban on all processions that even prohibited a group of 4 or more people to meet publicly. At about 12:40 PM, Dyer received confidential information about the meeting taking place at Jallianwala Bagh that may result in riots and protests. By mid-day, thousands of people were gathered at the Jallianwala Bagh including the devotees at Harmandir Sahib. Jallianwala Bagh was covered on all sides by walls reaching up to 10 feet. It is equipped with narrow entrances, most of which were locked. The place was flocked by the devotees, traders, farmers and merchants who visited Amritsar to enjoy the festival and witness the Baisakhi horse and cattle fair. Sensing the number of people present there and the secret meeting that was going to take place at 4:30 PM, General Dyer arrived there with armed troops.
The main entrance was also guarded by the armed troops. There were armoured cars accompanying the troops that were supposedly carrying machine guns and explosives. On Dyer’s orders, there was ruthless firing done on the uninformed crowd. There were about 25,000 people present there at the time of firing. Some tried to escape while some choose to jump in the solitude well built in the premises of Jallianwala Bagh. The troops were ordered to start shooting from the most densely crowded spot to harm the maximum number of people. This heinous act of violence resulted in extreme mass killing. The firing continued for about 10 minutes, and it only ceased when the ammunition supplies were almost exhausted. The scattered dead bodies could not even be moved due to the implemented curfew. Colonel Dyer reportedly carried out this firing not just to disperse the meeting, but to punish the Indians for disobeying their orders.
The number of deaths caused by firing had always been disputed, while the official figure said 379 deaths, but unofficial figures were approx 1500 deaths.
Keeping in mind the significance of this place in modern Indian history, a memorial was built at the site which was inaugurated by then President of India on 13th April 1961. The monument and the adjoining building walls tell the tale of that massacre, and depict the pain that the people suffered that day. The well in which hundreds of people jumped to escape the bullets, is also preserved in the compound.
As India & UK prepare to commemorate the 100 years of tragedy, people feel there is a remote chance that Britain might offer an apology.
British PM David Cameron during his visit to Amritsar had said, the massacre is deeply shameful event in British history. We must never forget what happened here. He insisted that incident happened decades ago and offering an apology was not the right thing to do.
There had been debate in the House of Lords in London, this Feb instigated by Lord Raj Loomba, he was joined by other peers of Indian and non Indian origin from across the political parties. As per Lord Loomba, chances are 50:50 about an apology.
So let us watch the further developments.
Awaiting for your comments/feed backs/views.
Anil Malik
Mumbai, India
8th Apr 2019.
R. N. Mungale.
Public apology is the least British can tender after all these years.