107th anniversary of the Jallianwala Bagh
The Jallianwala Bagh Massacre: Gandhi’s Shift from Loyalty to Rebellion By Siby K. Joseph After leading Satyagraha in South Africa from 1906 to 1914, Gandhi returned to India in January 1915. While his early intervention in Champaran in 1917 demonstrated the power of non-violence, its scope remained localized. In 1919, the British government enacted the Anarchical and Revolutionary Crimes Act, popularly known as the Rowlatt Act, to suppress rising nationalist sentiment. Gandhi viewed this law as a "shock" designed to "rob the people of all real freedom" and called upon the public to offer Satyagraha against the oppressive act. In Amritsar, renowned national leaders Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlu and Dr. Satyapal organised protests against the Rowlatt Act. People from all sects participated in peaceful gatherings at Jallianwala Bagh. This led to significant misunderstandings among the British authorities, who subsequently ordered the arrest and deportation of both Kitchlu ...