Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (incident)

 Overview

An artist's depiction of the massacre, no true images were captured of the incident by camera^{[citation needed]}

On April 13, 1919 British troops under the command of then General Dyer fired on hundreds of unarmed Indians who had gathered for an event in Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar, Punjab, India.^[1] The incident was a major cause for increased anti-British sentiment in later half of the British Raj in India
and inspired freedom fighters like Bhagat Singh to take up arms.^[2]

Backstory

Reginald Edward Harry Dyer, the then British General who ordered the massacre.

People from nearby towns and villages had gathered for the peaceful celebration of Baisakhi festival in a open ground surrounded on all sides by high walls except two openings.^[3] Anti-protest repressions by the British govt. were at an all time high due to the increased number of protests all across India by new modern freedom fighters.

Reginald Edward Harry Dyer, the then General in-charge of the area was in formed of the gathering and he ordered a probe into the same. As per few reports, some people saw planes flying overhead the gathering about 1hr 30mins before what was going to be the most cruel act by British in Indian history.^[4]

General Dyer, was possibly, in the illusion that the people were protesting and hence ordered his troops to inform everyone to dismiss the event or he shall take strict measures ^{[citation required]}. 

The crowd however was determined to successfully complete the event. Says earlier the British government had ordered a curfew as per which people were not allow to get together and more than four people should not meet together. This was to prevent any activity that could have hurt the British rule in India.

Incident

Bullet holes on the walls still reminds people of the horrifying day.

Once sure that the crowd did not subside, Dyer then came up with a sudden but cruel plan. He ordered all the gates leading to the ground and preferred his troops to for on unsuspecting unarmed civilians without any warning of any such action. 

The people still in shock were forced to either jump into a well to death or die by the bullet wounds. Many tried to climb the gates but were taken down by the troops. Our was also revealed that the troops also involved Indians themselves, Indian soldiers. 

The well in Jallianwala Bagh where many were forced to jump to their death for the fear of being shot by bullet.

Dyer had reportedly said that "...not even one should survive, ensure that, not one..." ^{[citation needed]}

Aftermath

News of the incident was soon dispatched to major cities by daily newspapers run by famous freedom fighters like Lala Lajpat Rai. Kesari was one of the major newspapers to disperse the news first.

Initially though, the news were very unclear about the event and failed to specify the exact number is deaths. It wasn't until 1 week that brutality and barbaric nature of the act was fully unfolded in front of the public as a whole, all over India.

Reaction and Criticism

The act was condemned by the British royal family and the world as a whole. Mahatma Gandhi was, who was a firm believer in non violence was shocked at the incident and condemned no action against Dyer from the British authorities. However, one month later Dyer was called back in England.