103 Year Of Jallianwala Bagh Massacre
Jallianwala Bagh Massacre
- The Jallianwala Bagh massacre, also known as the Amritsar massacre, took place on 13 April 1919.
- This year india commemorate the 103rd anniversaryof the terror that shook the entire country to a standstill.
- According to British government records, 379 people including men, women, and children were killed while 1,200 were injured in the indiscriminate firing ordered by Colonel Reginald Dyer.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tributes to the victims and said that their unparalleled courage and sacrifice will keep motivating the coming generations.
- He also shared a video of the Jallianwala Bagh memorial complex that was inaugurated last year. He stated that those 10 minutes of April 13, 1919, became the immortal story of our freedom struggle, due to which we are able to celebrate the Amrit Mahotsav of freedom today.
- Union Home Minister Amit Shah and other leaders too paid tributes, remembering the massacre as “a symbol of the ruthlessness and brutal atrocities of foreign rule.”
- The Jallianwalabagh garden has been converted into a memorial. And thousands of people on this day come to pay their respects to the martyred men, and women, who were killed on that fateful day for the nation.
What happened on April 13, 1919
- The British had imposed a draconian Martial Law, banning public gatherings. Unaware, a crowd of unarmed protesters and pilgrims gathered at Jallianwala Bagh in Punjab’s Amritsar on the occasion of Baisakhi.
- The crowd had assembled to peacefully protest at the venue condemning the arrest of freedom fighters Satya Pal and Dr Saifuddin Kitchlew.
- When Colonel Dyer got to know about the gathering, he reached the venue with around 50 soldiers and asked them to fire on those people.
- The firing went on for about 10 minutes and around 1,650 rounds of bullets were fired.
- According to British government, 379 people died and 1,200 were wounded in the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. Some records say, nearly a thousand were killed.
- The massacre angered Indians and Mahatma Gandhi gave a call for non-cooperation movement.
10 Most Terrifying Massacres That Happened In India
1. Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (1919)
Death – 5,600
- On a day of curfew, a crowd of Baishakhi pilgrims and some protestors (demanding the release of two nationalist leaders) gathered together in the Jallianwala Bagh garden in Amritsar, Punjab. All of a sudden British Indian Army troop storm into the premise and to everyone’s disbelief opened fire on unarmed nonviolent folks. Under Reginald Dyer’s order for 10 long minutes bullets went flying into people’s flesh. This incident had stunned the world but many, who approved of the British Raj in India, hailed Dyer as a hero.
- Moplah Rebellion (1922)
Death – 2,337 to 10,000
- A clash occurred between the Mappila Muslims and the British authorities and Hindus that ultimately caused permanent migration of over 1,00,000 Hindus. Today many believe that instead of being a religious issue, the rebellion was more of an up-rise against British authorities and was quiet a significant event during the time.
- Calcutta Riots (1946)
Death – 5,000 to 10,000
- On the tensed morning of 16th August, the largest gathering of Muslims sat at the Maidan. A riot was expected as a number of them were armed with iron bars and bamboo sticks. When the disorder broke out a number of shops were looted, houses were set on fire and people were dragged out of building and slaughtered. The riot was communal in nature and is perhaps the darkest spot in the history of the City of Joy.
4. Bihar Massacre (30 October – 7 November 1946)
Death – 2,000 to 30,000
- This large-scale massacre in Bihar actually made the Partition of India inevitable. Several serious instances of violence broke out at various places. Police stayed largely aloof as the devastation engulfed village after village until a fairly large area was covered with the wails of people who had lost their dear ones.
5. Partition Of India (1947)
Death – 10,00,000 on both sides
- The partition that lead to the creation of Dominion of Pakistan (which later split into Pakistan and Bangladesh) and the Union of India (later known as Republic of India) saw one of the largest number of deaths in human history. And not just that, the partition was also the largest mass migrations the world had ever seen.
6. Hyderabad Massacre (1948)
Death – 27000 to 40,000
- This is another shameful communal violence that only got worse when the Nizam encouraged the Razakar Islamic militia to reign terror over common people. The atrocities that the poor victims of this violence faced ranged from looting to sexual assault.
7. Gujarat Riots (1969)
Death – 660
- Following the Partition, the Gujarat Riots of 1969 is the most bloody and destructive communal violence to have occurred. It involved large scale killing, looting and general destruction. Later the Commission of Enquiry had raised question regarding the police’s role in the riot.
8. Moradabad Riots (1980)
Death – officially 400; unofficially 2500
- The riot took place in the city of Moradabad and although initially it was between the local Muslims and police, later it became communal. This lead to a series of murder, looting and arson. As many as 2500 lives were lost but the Government of India paid a compensation for only 400 deaths. Following the riot the city’s brassware industry recorded a sharp decline.
9. Nellie Massacre (1983)
Death – officially 2,191; unofficially 5,000
- The Nellie Massacre occurred in Assam and was political by nature. Today it’s regarded as one of the worst pogroms since the World War II. Within a stretch of 6 hours 14 villages were engulfed into this violence. The massacre was carried out largely within the indigenous and lower castes communities.
10. 1984 Anti-Sikh Riots
Death – 8,000 -10,000
- In a response to the assassination of Indira Gandhi by her bodyguards sporadic violence spread across the country. A number of newspaper houses and human right organisations believed that rather than being spontaneous, the violence was calculated and organised. In 2011, the Human Rights Watch had reported that the Indian Government is ‘yet to prosecute the people behind the mass killing’.
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