Amritsar: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Ram Nath Kovind and Congress chief Rahul Gandhi were among the leaders who paid tribute to the martyrs of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre on its 100th anniversary on Saturday.
On this day in 1919, a group of soldiers of the British Raj opened fire at unarmed civilians taking part in a peaceful protest at the Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar; official figures then estimated the death toll at 379, though local residents claim the casualty figure was far higher.
Taking to Twitter, Modi said, “Today, when we observe 100 years of the horrific Jallianwala Bagh massacre, India pays tributes to all those martyred on that fateful day. Their valour and sacrifice will never be forgotten. Their memory inspires us to work even harder to build an India they would be proud of.”
President Kovind tweeted, “A 100 years ago today, our beloved freedom fighters were martyred at Jallianwala Bagh. A horrific massacre, a stain on civilisation, that day of sacrifice can never be forgotten by India. At this solemn moment, we pay our tribute to the immortals of Jallianwala.”
Congress chief Rahul Gandhi arrived at Jallianwala Bagh on Saturday with Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and state minister Navjot Singh Sidhu to pay homage. Gandhi wrote in the visitors' book, “The cost of freedom must never ever be forgotten. We salute the people of India who gave everything they had for it. Jai Hind.”
The Jallianwala Bagh massacre is considered a symbol of colonial cruelty and the Indian public and governments has been demanding an apology for it from the UK for decades, including on the occasion of the visit of Queen Elizabeth to Amritsar in 1997. Jallianwala Bagh is also considered a turning point in the Indian freedom struggle, with its focus shifting from seeking better conditions for the native population to full independence.
On Saturday morning, British High Commissioner to India Sir Dominic Asquith laid a wreath at the Jallianwala Bagh memorial and stated, “'Today we remember with deep sorrow those who were killed on April 13, 1919 and regret the suffering caused”.
British Prime Minister Theresa May told her country's Parliament on Wednesday, "the tragedy of Jallianwala Bagh in 1919 is a shameful scar on British Indian history", but stopped short of issuing a formal apology. In 2013, then British prime minister David Cameron described the killings as a "deeply shameful event" while visiting the Jallianwala Bagh.
