Jallianwala Bagh Massacre

Syllabus– General Studies 1 

Context

The Prime Minister recently inaugurated a renovated version of the Jallianwala Bagh memorial complex.

Background:

• On October 14, 1919, six months after the Jallianwala Bagh massacre,  the Government of India, with approval of the Secretary of State for India, Edwin Montagu, instituted a committee to investigate not only the Jallianwala Bagh incident at Amritsar but also the disturbances which took place in Bombay, Delhi and Punjab.
• Accordingly, the Disorders Inquiry Committee was set up with Lord William Hunter, a former Solicitor General of Scotland as the president with seven members. 
• The committee held its first meeting in Delhi on October 29, 1919, and heard evidence of witnesses on eight days in Delhi, 29 days in Lahore, six days in Ahmedabad and three days in Bombay. The report was presented on March 8, 1920, and was in the form of a majority report and a minority report. 
• The majority report delved into the incidents which had taken place in Amritsar prior to April 13, 1919, which included violence at several places in the city and police firing which left at least ten people dead. 
• The minority report of the committee brought out the evidence given by Dyer in great detail. He testified that his mind had already been made up to order the firing when he reached the Bagh.

Events Before the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre

• During World War I (1914–18) the British government of India enacted a series of repressive emergency powers that were intended to combat subversive activities.
• By the war’s end, expectations were high among the Indian populace that those measures would be eased and that India would be given more political autonomy. The Montagu-Chelmsford Report, presented to the British Parliament in 1918, did in fact recommend limited local self-government.
• Further, the then government of India passed what became known as the Rowlatt Acts in early 1919, which essentially extended the repressive wartime measures. The acts were met by widespread anger and discontent among Indians, notably in the Punjab region. Gandhi in early April called for a one-day general strike (Rowlatt Satyagraha) throughout the country.
• In Amritsar, the news that prominent Indian leaders (Satya Pal and Saifuddin Kitchlew) had been arrested and banished from that city sparked violent protests on April 10, in which soldiers fired upon civilians and angry mobs killed several foreign nationals.
• A force of several dozen troops commanded by Brig. Gen. Reginald Edward Harry Dyer was given the task of restoring order. Among the measures taken was a ban on public gatherings.

Background of the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre

• The situation in Punjab was alarming as there were riots and protests against the Rowlatt Act.
• Punjab was put under martial law, which meant that it became unlawful for more than 4 people to assemble at a place.
• The Lieutenant-Governor of Punjab at that time was Michael O’Dwyer. Lord Chelmsford was India’s Viceroy.
• On the day of the festival of Baisakhi on 13th April 1919 in Jallianwala Bagh, a public garden in Amritsar, a crowd of non-violent protests had gathered. Also, among the crowd were pilgrims who had come to celebrate Baisakhi.
• General Dyer came there with his troops and blocked the only narrow entrance to the garden.
• Then, without warning, he ordered his troops to fire at the unarmed crowd, which included children as well.
• The indiscriminate firing went on for about 10 minutes until the 1650 rounds of ammunition were exhausted. This resulted in the deaths of at least 1000 people and injured more than 1500 people.
• This tragedy came as a rude shock to Indians and totally destroyed their faith in the British system of justice.
• National leaders condemned the act and Dyer unequivocally.
• However, Dyer was appreciated by many in Britain and the British in India, although some people in the British government were quick to criticize it. Those who criticized his actions included Winston Churchill and former Prime Minister H.H Asquith.
• The government set up the Hunter Commission to inquire into the massacre. Although the commission condemned the act by Dyer, it did not impose any disciplinary action against him.
• He was relieved of his duties in the army in 1920.
• In protest against the massacre and the British failure to give due justice to the victims, Rabindranath Tagore gave up his knighthood and Gandhiji relinquished his title ‘Kaiser-e-hind’ bestowed on him by the British for his services during the Boer War in South Africa.
• Michael O’Dwyer, the then Lieutenant-Governor of Punjab, who had approved the actions of Brigadier-General Dyer, was assassinated by Udham Singh in London in 1940 as revenge against the massacre. Udham Singh is believed to have witnessed the massacre as a child.

The Indian Express link-https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-what-went-through-the-mind-of-brig-gen-dyer-on-fateful-day-of-jallianwala-bagh-massacre-7474431/  

Question- Jallian Wala Bagh Massacre proved to be a turning point both in the Indian history and freedom struggle. Explain.