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The Rowlatt Act (1919) and the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre
1. The Rowlatt Act (1919)
- Official Name: The Anarchical and Revolutionary Crimes Act of 1919.
- Viceroy: Passed during the viceroyalty of Lord Chelmsford (1916-1921).
- Purpose: To curtail national and revolutionary activities by suppressing sedition.
- Basis: Based on the recommendations of the Sedition Committee (1918) chaired by Justice Sidney Rowlatt.
- Provisions:
- Authorized the government to imprison any person without trial.
- Allowed for summary procedures for trial (no jury).
- Public Reaction:
- Aroused widespread popular indignation as it severely curtailed individual liberty.
- Famously condemned as a law offering “No plea (Daleel), No lawyer (Vakil), No appeal.”
- Denounced as the “Black Act.”
2. The Rowlatt Satyagraha
- Leader: Mahatma Gandhi.
- Significance: It was Gandhi’s first venture into all-India politics.
- Nature: A pan-India movement involving people of all religions, castes, and genders.
- Demands: Protested for freedom of the press and an end to detention without trial.
- Methods:
- Gandhi tried to utilize the Home Rule League for the agitation.
- Swami Shraddhanand suggested launching a tax campaign (refusing to pay rent) as a form of protest.
3. The Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (1919)
- What & When: A tragic shooting of a peaceful gathering by British troops occurred on April 13, 1919, in Amritsar, Punjab.
- Context: The massacre happened during the Rowlatt Satyagraha.
- Immediate Cause:
- People gathered to protest against the arrest of two popular Punjabi leaders, Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlu and Dr. Satyapal on April 9, 1919.
- Many were also in the city for the annual Baisakhi fair.
- The Event:
- A large, unarmed crowd gathered in the enclosed garden of Jallianwala Bagh.
- General Reginald Dyer blocked the exits and ordered troops to open fire on the crowd without warning.
- Casualties: An estimated 1,000 people were killed and 2,000 were injured in the 10-minute shooting.
4. Aftermath and Protests
- Rabindranath Tagore: Renounced his British knighthood (on May 30, 1919) in protest.
- Sir Sankaran Nair: Resigned from the Viceroy’s Executive Council in protest.
- British Stance: The British Lieutenant-Governor of Punjab, Sir Michael O’Dwyer, is widely considered the chief architect behind the oppressive policies that led to the massacre. He endorsed Dyer’s action.
- British Inquiry: The Hunter Committee (Disorders Inquiry Committee), chaired by Lord William Hunter, was appointed to investigate.
- Its report justified the imposition of martial law and criticized Mahatma Gandhi for the unrest.
- Congress Response:
- The Indian National Congress condemned Dyer’s actions and the use of martial law.
- The task of drafting the Indian National Congress’s own inquiry report was entrusted to Mahatma Gandhi.
- British Term: The Secretary of State for India, Edwin Montagu, characterized the massacre as “Preventive Murder.”
5. Key Figures and Their Roles
| Figure | Role |
|---|---|
| Lord Chelmsford | Viceroy of India when the Rowlatt Act was passed and the massacre occurred. |
| Justice Sidney Rowlatt | Chaired the Sedition Committee whose report led to the Rowlatt Act. |
| Mahatma Gandhi | Led the all-India Rowlatt Satyagraha; tasked with drafting the Congress inquiry report. |
| General Reginald Dyer | The British officer who ordered the shooting at Jallianwala Bagh. |
| Michael O’Dwyer | British Lieutenant-Governor of Punjab; chief architect of oppressive policies; assassinated in 1940 by Udham Singh for his role. |
| Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlu & Dr. Satyapal | Popular Punjabi leaders whose arrest was the immediate cause for the Jallianwala Bagh gathering. |
| Rabindranath Tagore | Renounced his knighthood in protest (1919); awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature (1913). |
| Swami Shraddhanand | Suggested a tax campaign (non-payment of rent) to protest the Rowlatt Act. |
| David Lloyd George | Prime Minister of England during the events. |
6. Sequence of Contextual Events
- April 9, 1919: Incarceration of Dr. Satyapal and Saifuddin Kitchlu.
- April 13, 1919: Jallianwala Bagh Massacre.
- May 30, 1919: Rabindranath Tagore renounces his knighthood.
- December 1919: Amritsar Congress Session.
- 1940: Michael O’Dwyer assassinated by Udham Singh in London.
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