Punjab CM Amarinder Singh contradicts Rahul Gandhi on Jallianwala Bagh memorial revamp

Complementing the Indian government, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, on Tuesday, said that the revamped Jallianwala Bagh Memorial "looks very nice". 

Singh's statement comes after Rahul Gandhi criticised the Centre over the move to revamp the memorial. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had, on Saturday, dedicated the renovated Jallianwala Bagh memorial to the country via video conference. 

Amarinder Singh contradicts Rahul Gandhi on Jallianwala Bagh Memorial

The Punjab chief minister and senior Congress leader Singh had previously said that the Jallianwala Bagh Memorial should serve as a reminder for future generations about the right of people to peaceful democratic protests. Complementing the revamp, Singh said the memorial looks very nice. 

"I don't know what has been removed. To me, it looks very nice," said Captain Amarinder Singh 

Singh added that the Smarak seeks to pay tribute to the great martyrs from whom future generations can seek inspiration. 

"The Smarak seeks to pay tribute to the great martyrs. so that history may always remember their sacrifice and our present and future generations can draw inspiration from their patriotism," he had said 

The Punjab chief minister also requested the Centre to retrieve the personal belongings (a pistol and personal diary) of Shaheed Udham Singh, who avenged the injustice of this massacre, from the United Kingdom to India. Singh informed that he has already written to the External Affairs Minister regarding the matter. 

It should be mentioned that Singh's statement comes in contradiction to what senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had said about the revamp. Calling the renovation "an insult to martyrs," Gandhi had tweeted in Hindi that as the son of a martyr he will not tolerate this insult.   

Jallianwala Bagh massacre

The Jallianwala Bagh massacre, also known as the Amritsar massacre, had occurred on 13 April 1919. A large but peaceful crowd had gathered at the Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar, Punjab, to protest against the arrest of pro-Indian Independence leaders Dr Saifuddin Kitchlu and Dr Satya Pal. 

Hundreds of people were killed on the day after British troops fired indiscriminately on the unarmed gathering of thousands who had assembled at Jallianwala Bagh. The fathering was part of nationwide protests against the Rowlatt Act which extended wartime repressive measures. According to British government records, 379 people including men, women, and children were killed while 1,200 were wounded in the firing. Other sources place the number of dead at well over 1,000.