Jallianwala Bagh Massacre

Introduction

Jallianwala Bagh Massacre, known as the Amritsar massacre was considered to be the most lethal event in the history of Indian Independence. A huge crowd, fully unarmed, had assembled at the place of Amritsar, Punjab for protesting against the Rowlatt Act.

The Brigadier General, Reginald Dyer, in response to this protest, encircled the crowed with his army and explicitly ordered to shoot them. This impromptu horrific event resulted in a death of thousands of innocent protestors.

Image 1:Jallianwala Memorial

Background of the Jallianwala Bagh

The First World War showed the contribution of British India to the war of Britishers with the providence of resources and men. It was observed that many labours as well as soldiers from India served in many places such as Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. Here, the princes as well as the administration of India provided ammunition, money, and food. Punjab as well as Bengal remained an anti-colonial activity source. The regional administration becomes paralysed by increased attacks in Punjab and Bengal.

The Lucknow Pact was established in the year 1916 and after this; the policy in India started to change. It had happened with the Montagu–Chelmsford reforms incident and at that moment Gandhi returned to this place.

Sidney Rowlatt was a judge who belonged to Anglo-Egypt and the man was the head of the sedition committee. This committee resolve the problem of the crushed Ghadar conspiracy, Raja Mahendra Pratap’s Kabul mission in Afghanistan, and active revolutionary movement in Bengal and Punjab. This committee recommended the Rowlatt Act for limiting the civil liberties in India. Gandhi protested this Act and then some furious events took place.

Before the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre

The situation in Punjab deteriorated and there were disturbances in communication, telegraph, as well as rail. This massacre was considered to be the result of the Punjab administration conspiracy.

The Indian people made a protest at Amritsar’s Deputy Commissioner’s residence. They made a demand for releasing two famous Indian Independence Movement leaders. The crowd were shot by the military and a lot of people died in this incident. The result of this matter was that the British government tried to improve their punishment system.

The Massacre

Dyer forbade any kind of meetings on Sunday, 13 April 1919, but not all the villagers were aware of the notice. They assembled at the Bagh for celebrating Baisakhi, a great Hindu festival. But they also protested against the arrest of two national leaders. Despite of Dyer’s notice, people ignored those orders relentlessly. They went on to protest, requesting the British government to release their two leaders and berating about the firing.

Dyer’s notice was mentioned in English, Urdu, Hindi, and Punjabi and in the meantime, they learned about the gathering of Jallianwala Bagh and they surrounded it as and blocked the exit point. Dyer then ordered to shoot at the crowd and there were men, women, elderly people and children in that crowd who were killed.

Image 2:Result of Jallianwala Bagh Massacre

Casualties of the Massacre

There was a debate about the total casualty numbers because the papers presented the number of 200 casualties. In this part, the Hunter Commission criticised the Punjab government for not being able to accumulate the proper number. According to the report of Sewa Samiti society there was the death of 379 people and 192 have died.

This commission announced the number of 1500 casualties based on the report of this society. Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya inquired into this matter and presented the death of 42 boys and among them, one was 7 months old. After these incidents, the Indian National Congress (INC) made several casualties and it said the death of approximately 1000 people.

Swami Shraddhanand was a nationalist from India and this man said Gandhi about the death of 1500 people. The government of the Britishers attempted in suppressing information about this matter but the news opened out in entire India.

Monument and Legacy

The Jallianwala Bagh incident witnessed some legacy as well as monuments and it was seen that in 1920, a trust was established. This was built with the passing of the resolution by INC; this trust then obtained land for this project.

Image 3:Bullet marks at Jallianwala Bagh

Benjamin Polk was a famous architect and the man who designed the memorial and it was launched by Rajendra Prasad on 13 April 1961. He was the Indian president at that time and Jawaharlal Nehru was presented there. The marks of the bullets remained at that place as well as the well was preserved. The people have died at the well while trying to save themselves from the hit of the bullets.

Conclusion

The incident of Jallianwala Bagh showed the death of many Indian protestors who protested against the Rowlatt Act. They were killed by blocking the exit point and this event shook Indian people greatly. Rabindranath Tagore, the great famous Indian novelist protested against the incident and renounced his knighthood. This incident led the British army to decide less violent tactics to control the crowds. This incident was called one of the great reasons for the end of British rule in India.

FAQs

Q1. Who was behind the incident of the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre?

Ans. Colonel Reginald Dyer was the responsible person for this pathetic event. It happened at Jallianwala Bagh, Amritsar and caused the deaths of children, women, as well as men.

Q2. What was the result of this massacre?

Ans. Several protests took place all over the country for protesting against the British government. After this incident, the materials law was declared on Lahore, Amritsar, Gujranwala, Gujarat and Lyallpore.

Q3. Who was Udham Singh?

Ans. This man was one of the Indian revolutionary leaders and he was famous for killing Michael O'Dwyer.