In News
Recently, the Prime Minister paid tributes to the victims of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre.
Key Points
Background
- The massacre of April 1919 wasn’t an isolated incident, rather an incident that happened with a multitude of factors working in the background.
- To understand what transpired on April 13, 1919, one must look at the events preceding it.
Rowlatt Act
- The Rowlatt Act (Black Act) was passed on March 10, 1919, authorizing the government to imprison or confine, without a trial, any person associated with seditious activities. This led to nationwide unrest.
- Gandhi Ji initiated Satyagraha to protest against the Rowlatt Act.
- On April 7, 1919, Gandhi published an article called Satyagrahi, describing ways to oppose the Rowlatt Act.
- The British authorities discussed amongst themselves the actions to be taken against Gandhi and any other leaders who were participating in the Satyagraha.
- Orders were issued to prohibit Gandhi from entering Punjab and to arrest him if he disobeyed the orde
- Dr Saifuddin Kitchlew and Dr Satyapal, the two prominent leaders who were a symbol of Hindu-Muslim unity, organised a peaceful protest against the Rowlatt Act in Amritsar.
Jallianwala Bagh Massacre
- The Jallianwala Bagh massacre took place on April 13, 1919, when troops of the British Indian Army, under the command of Colonel Reginald Dyer, fired machine guns into a crowd of unarmed protesters and pilgrims who had gathered in Jallianwala Bagh in Punjab’s Amritsar on the occasion of Baisakhi.
- The crowd had assembled peacefully at the venue to condemn the arrest of two national leaders — Satya Pal and Saifuddin Kitchlew as they were a symbol of Hindu-Muslim unity, organising a peaceful protest against the Rowlatt Act in Amritsar.
- The official figure released by the British claimed that a little over 350 people were killed in the massacre, the Congress party claimed that the number was as high as 1,000.
Post Jallianwala Bagh Massacre
- Two days after the massacre, Martial Law was clamped down on five districts – Lahore, Amritsar, Gujranwala, Gujarat and Lyallpore.
- The declaration of Martial Law was to empower the Viceroy to direct immediate trial by court-martial of any person involved in the revolutionary activities. As the news of the massacre spread across the nation, Tagore renounced his Knighthood.
Hunter Commission
- On October 14, 1919, the Disorders Inquiry Committee was formed to inquire about the massacre. It later came to be known as the Hunter Commission.
- The Hunter Commission was directed to announce their verdict on the justifiability, or otherwise, of the steps taken by the government. All the British officials involved in the administration during the disturbances in Amritsar were interrogated including General Dyer and Mr Irving.
