"An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind."
- Louis Fischer, describing Gandhi's philosophy on violence in his book The Life of Mahatma Gandhi, 1950
(Courtesy of gandhiworld.in)
- Louis Fischer, describing Gandhi's philosophy on violence in his book The Life of Mahatma Gandhi, 1950
(Courtesy of gandhiworld.in)
The Massacre
The pent up anger against the Rowlatt Act instigated violence in some parts of Punjab, which made General Dyer issue orders to open fire on a peaceful gathering at Jallianwala Bagh, Amristar, to display the might of the British. This horrific event claimed 380 innocent lives, left 1,100 injured, and proved to be the harbinger of the Indian Movement.
The pent up anger against the Rowlatt Act instigated violence in some parts of Punjab, which made General Dyer issue orders to open fire on a peaceful gathering at Jallianwala Bagh, Amristar, to display the might of the British. This horrific event claimed 380 innocent lives, left 1,100 injured, and proved to be the harbinger of the Indian Movement.
(Courtesy of amritsar.com)
|
Cold-blooded Execution
"The incident in Jallianwala Bagh was 'an extraordinary event, a monstrous event, an event which stands in singular and sinister isolation" ...The Indians were 'packed together so that one bullet would drive through three or four bodies'; the people 'ran madly this way and the other. When fire was directed upon the centre, they ran to the sides. The fire was then directed to the sides. Many threw themselves down on the ground, and the fire was then directed on the ground. This was continued for eight or ten minutes, and it stopped only when the ammunition had reached the point of exhaustion" -Winston Churchill (Prime Minister of England, 1940-1945 & 1951-1955) in the House of Commons debate of 8 July, 1920 (Courtesy of dawn.com) |
Rights Forfeited
Click on the image to enlarge
[Courtesy of New York Times-(June 18, 1922)] |
"...[Gandhi] was bringing a new method of resistance...
and this was what will completely alter our perception..." - Dr. Vinay Lal, Historian and Professor at UCLA |
Responsible Rational Thinking
(Courtesy of the documentary: "Mahatma Gandhi Pilgrim Of Peace")
Aftermath...
- After the massacre, Gandhi lost faith in British imperialism.
- In this hour of crisis, Gandhi showed responsibility by averting clashes between the public and the Raj (regime). Instead, he launched a nationwide Non-Cooperation Movement, through non-violent Satyagraha (pursuance of truth).