Baisakhi reminds of Jallianwala Bagh |
When Brigadier-General Reginald Edward Harry Dyer got off from his car, in front of the Jallianwala Bagh, a public garden in Amritsar, he had with him 50 Gorkhas and Baluchis armed with rifles and 25 Gorkhas carrying khukris. A gathering consisting of about 20,000 to 25,000 people was expected to assemble in the garden, against the orders of the British. He didn`t disperse the crowd, but immediately ordered them to surround the garden from all sides. The historic day was April 13, 1919, when Punjabis celebrate the commencement of the new year in the form of Baisakhi. On that particular year however, this joyous occasion was singled out by this large group of Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs to protest against the implementation of the Rowlatt Act that gave unlimited powers to the government. The Jallianwala Bagh meeting on April 13 was a peaceful assemblage to take resolutions against the Act. However, not all were protesters. Several among them were Baisakhi pilgrims who had come to visit the Golden Temple and were passing through the garden on their way. Little were they aware that the auspicious occasion of new year celebrations would soon be disrupted by a horrifying scene of bloodbath that would continue to haunt Punjab`s and India`s memories for decades to come.
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