Jallianwala Bagh Massacre Day is observed every year on April 13

Jallianwala Bagh Massacre Day is observed every year on April 13

¨     Jallianwala Bagh Massacre Day is observed every year on April 13.

¨     In memory of the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre, the Jallianwala Bagh Memorial has been constructed at the very site where this massacre took place in 1919.

      Understanding the historical background is crucial for both Static GK and Current Affairs

¨     Jallianwala Bagh Massacre Day marks a dark chapter in the history of India. On April 13, 1919, British troops massacred a peaceful crowd at Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar.

¨     Hundreds of people were killed, and even more were injured. Jallianwala Bagh Massacre Day is observed in memory of the hundreds of innocent people who stood against the brutal and oppressive British rule in India.

¨     The Rowlatt Act was a controversial law passed by the British government in India in 1919, during the era of British colonial rule. The Rowlatt Act granted British officials in India sweeping powers to arrest individuals without trial and detain them for up to two years.

¨     This Act was passed in response to growing dissent and the independence movement in India, which British officials perceived as a threat to their rule.

¨     The Act faced widespread opposition from Indian political leaders, who viewed it as a violation of their civil liberties and a betrayal of the principles of justice and fairness. On April 13, 1919, a large, peaceful crowd gathered to celebrate Baisakhi and to protest against the Rowlatt Act, despite the fact that Section 144 of the Act had already been imposed.

¨     General Reginald Dyer, the British military commander in Amritsar, deemed this crowd a grave threat to British rule in India and ordered his troops to open fire on the unarmed people without any warning or provocation, resulting in the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre.

¨     The firing lasted for approximately 10 to 15 minutes, in which more than 400 people were killed (although, according to official British figures, it is claimed that over 1,000 people were killed and even more were injured)—many of whom were innocent bystanders.