'Great Souls Who Sacrificed Their..': President Murmu, PM Modi Pay Homage to Jallianwala Bagh Martyrs

Jallianwala Bagh Massacre, which took place in Amritsar on April 13, 1919, remained an enduring symbol of the courage with which Indians stood up against the oppression of the erstwhile British Raj. The ghastly incident marked the British troops firing on a large crowd of unarmed Indians who gathered in an open space in the Punjab region (now in Punjab state) of India, killing several hundred people and wounding many hundreds more.

New Delhi:President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday paid tribute to those killed in the Jallianwala Bagh massacre and asserted that the spirit of patriotism of those martyrs will keep inspiring the coming generations.

"My heartfelt tribute to all the freedom fighters who sacrificed everything for the motherland in Jallianwala Bagh! The countrymen will always be indebted to all those great souls who sacrificed their lives for swaraj. I am sure that the spirit of patriotism of those martyrs will always inspire the coming generations," the president said in a post in Hindi on X.

"On behalf of my family members across the country, I pay my deepest respects to all the brave martyrs of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre," PM Modi wrote on X.

The Jallianwala Bagh Massacre, which occurred in Jallianwala Bagh, Amritsar, in the state of Punjab, is commemorated on April 13 every year.

What happened on April 13, 1919

It was the day of Baisakhi when approximately 20,000 people gathered at Jallianwala Bagh, a garden spread across six to seven acres in Amritsar in Punjab to peacefully protest the arrest of two leaders Dr. Satyapal and Dr. Saifuddin.

Without warning, the British troops launched firing on the crowd of unarmed Indians in the open space, killing several hundred people and wounding many hundreds more. After they ceased firing, the troops immediately withdrew from the place, leaving behind the dead and wounded. It marked a turning point in India’s modern history, in that it left a permanent scar on Indo-British relations.

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