Ahead of the 100th anniversary of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, UK Prime Minister Theresa May on Wednesday expressed regret over the worst bloodbath committed by the British Army during the colonial period, terming it as a “shameful scar” on British Indian history.
“The tragedy of Jallianwala Bagh of 1919 is a shamefulscar on British Indian history. As Her Majesty the Queen (Elizabeth II) saidbefore visiting Jallianwala Bagh in 1997, it is a distressing example of ourpast history with India,” said the British leader while replying toquestions in the House of Commons.
“The United Kingdom deeply regrets what happened andthe suffering caused in Jallianwala Bagh tragedy.”
Former British Prime Minister David Cameron had describedthe tragedy as “a deeply shameful event in British history” during avisit to India in 2013.
On April 13, 1919, British forces led by Brigadier GeneralReginald Dyer opened fire in Jallianwala Bagh on thousands of unarmed andpeaceful protesters, including women and children, killing hundreds of them.
The Jallianwala Bagh houses the martyrs’ memorial which wasestablished in 1951 to commemorate the massacre. It is managed by theJallianwala Bagh National Memorial Trust.
In February this year, the Punjab Assembly unanimouslypassed a resolution to mount pressure on the Centre to seek a formal apologyfrom the British government “for one of the worst ever bloodbaths in theworld”.
The Assembly resolution stated that “an apology for themassacre would be a befitting tribute to the martyrs of Jallianwala Bagh duringits centenary year”.
“It was a dastardly act perpetrated upon the innocentpeople who had converged at the Jallianwala Bagh on the fateful day of Baisakhion April 13, 1919, to protest against Rowlatt Act of the Imperial rulers,”the resolution said.
A recently released researched book “Jallianwala Bagh,1919 – The Real Story” by author and columnist Kishwar Desai indicatedthat the British rulers of that time were unnerved by the unrest in Punjab ingeneral, and Amritsar in particular, which led them to do something which could”teach a lesson” to the citizens.