The
Jallianwala Bagh massacre, also known as the
Amritsar massacre, was an event which took place on 13 April 1919 when a crowd of nonviolent protesters, along with
Baishakhi pilgrims, who had gathered in
Jallianwala Bagh,
Amritsar,
Punjab were fired upon by troops of the
British Indian Army under the command of Colonel
Reginald Dyer. The civilians had assembled to participate in the annual
Baisakhi celebrations—both a religious and cultural festival for the Punjabis. Coming from outside the city, they may have been unaware of the martial law that had been imposed.