Jallianwala Bagh massacre | Historical Day, Details of the Incident and The Shooting

 

The Jallianwala Bagh massacre took place on April 13, 1919 (Vaisakhi day) at Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar, Punjab, India, near the Golden Temple. A ​​peaceful gathering was taking place in protest against the Rowlatt Act when British officer General Dyer ordered his troops to open fire on the unarmed crowd. More than 400 people were killed and over 2,000 were injured in the incident. The official list of martyrs at the Deputy Commissioner's office in Amritsar contains 484 names, while the Jallianwala Bagh memorial lists 388 names. According to British records, 379 people were killed and 200 injured, including 337 men, 41 minor boys, and a six-week-old baby. Non-official estimates put the death toll at over 1,500 and the number of injured at over 2,000.

If any single event had the greatest impact on the Indian independence movement, it was this horrific massacre. It is considered the beginning of the end of British rule in India.

In 1997, Queen Elizabeth II paid tribute to the martyrs at the memorial. In 2013, British Prime Minister David Cameron also visited the memorial. In the visitors' book, he wrote, "This was a shameful event in British history."

Events

Historical Day

April 13, 1919, was the day of Baisakhi. Baisakhi is a major festival celebrated across India, but it is particularly important for farmers in Punjab and Haryana, who celebrate the new year after harvesting their Rabi crop. On this very day, April 13, 1699, the tenth and last Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh, established the Khalsa Panth. Therefore, Baisakhi is the biggest festival of Punjab and the surrounding regions, and Sikhs celebrate it as the birthday of their community. A fair has been held in Amritsar on this day for centuries, and on that day, thousands of people from far and wide gathered in Amritsar to visit the Golden Temple (Sri Harmandir Sahib) and celebrate Baisakhi. Many children, women, and elderly people had gathered peacefully at Jallianwala Bagh, located about 500 meters from the temple, to celebrate the festival.

British Intentions

During World War I (1914-1918), Indian leaders and the general public openly supported the British government. The British government deployed 1.3 million Indian soldiers and service personnel to Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, of whom 43,000 were killed in the war. After the war ended, Indian leaders and the public expected the British government to cooperate and adopt a more lenient approach, but instead, the British government implemented the Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms, which were the complete opposite of these expectations.

However, anti-British sentiments had grown in Punjab during World War I, which was suppressed through the India Defence Act of 1915. In 1918, a sedition committee, chaired by British judge Sydney Rowlatt, was formed to investigate whether foreign powers were promoting anti-British activities in India, particularly in Punjab and Bengal. Based on the committee's recommendations, the Rowlatt Act was implemented in India. It was an extension of the 1915 India Defence Act, aimed at suppressing the freedom movement. This law granted the British government even more powers, such as censorship of the press, arbitrary detention without trial, arrest without warrant, and trials before special tribunals in secret courts without any accountability. Protests erupted across the country, and mass arrests took place nationwide.

Gandhi

By then, Gandhi had returned to India from South Africa, and his popularity was steadily increasing. He called for protests against the Rowlatt Act. The British government wanted to suppress this movement by arresting more leaders and citizens under this law and meting out harsh punishments. This further inflamed public anger, and people disrupted railway and postal services. The movement reached its peak in the first week of April. The streets of Lahore and Amritsar were filled with people. Approximately 5,000 people had gathered at Jallianwala Bagh. Many British officials considered this a recurrence of the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857 and were determined to crush it by any means necessary.

British Atrocities

Two leaders of the movement, Satyapal and Saifuddin Kitchlu, were arrested and sentenced to long prison terms. On April 10, 1919, their release was demanded before the Deputy Commissioner of Amritsar. However, the British army opened fire on the peaceful and orderly crowd, further escalating tensions. On that day, several banks, government buildings, town halls, and railway stations were set on fire. Five European civilians were killed in this violence. In retaliation, British soldiers opened fire indiscriminately on Indian people, killing between 8 and 20. Amritsar remained peaceful for the next two days, but the violence spread to other parts of Punjab, resulting in the deaths of three more European civilians. To quell the unrest, the British government imposed martial law in most parts of Punjab.

Details of the Incident

On April 13, 1919, during the religious festival of Baisakhi, a gathering took place at Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar, where several leaders were scheduled to deliver speeches. Despite a curfew being in effect in the city, hundreds of people who had come to attend the fair and celebrate Baisakhi with their families also gathered there after hearing about the meeting. While the leaders were addressing the crowd from a mound in the garden, Brigadier General Reginald Dyer arrived with 90 British soldiers, all armed with loaded rifles. Seeing the soldiers, the leaders asked the people to remain calm.

The Shooting

The soldiers surrounded the garden and, without any warning, opened fire on the unarmed crowd. A total of 1,650 rounds were fired in 10 minutes. At that time, Jallianwala Bagh was an open space behind a row of houses. There was only a narrow path, and buildings surrounded it on all sides. There was no way to escape. Some people jumped into the only well in the garden to save their lives, but the well soon filled with bodies. Jallianwala Bagh was once the property of a man named Jalli.

It was a tragedy. A plaque in the garden states that 120 bodies were recovered from the well. A curfew was imposed in the city, preventing the injured from being taken to the hospital for treatment. Many people died in agony on the spot. According to the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Amritsar, 484 people were killed, while the Jallianwala Bagh memorial lists the names of 388 martyrs. British records indicate that 200 people were injured and 379 were killed, including 337 men, 41 minor boys, and a six-week-old baby. Non-official estimates suggest that over 1000 people were killed and over 2000 were injured. Official figures state that 379 people were killed, while Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya estimated that at least 1300 people were killed. Swami Shraddhanand put the death toll at over 1500, and Dr. Smith, the then Civil Surgeon of Amritsar, estimated it at over 1800.