The Imperial Legislative Council enacted the Anarchical and Revolutionary Crimes Act on March 18, 1919, commonly designated the Rowlatt Act following the recommendations of Sir Sidney Rowlatt’s 1918 Sedition Committee. The statute authorized preventive detention without trial for up to two years, in-camera summary proceedings without legal counsel, and the internment of suspected political agitators, provoking widespread popular condemnation under the slogan 'No Dalil, No Vakil, No Appeal.' In response, Mahatma Gandhi established the Satyagraha Sabha and proclaimed a nationwide general strike (hartal) on April 6, 1919. Tensions escalated in Punjab following the arrest and deportation of nationalist leaders Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlew and Dr. Satyapal on April 9 under orders of Deputy Commissioner Miles Irving. On April 13, 1919, thousands of unarmed civilians gathered at Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar to celebrate the Baisakhi harvest festival and protest these expulsions. Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer sealed the sole egress and directed 50 Gurkha and Baluchi riflemen to fire 1,650 rounds into the trapped assembly without prior dispersal warning, inflicting catastrophic mortality. Sir Michael O’Dwyer, Lieutenant Governor of Punjab, endorsed Dyer’s actions and declared martial law across Lahore and Amritsar. In repudiation of colonial brutality, Rabindranath Tagore renounced his British Knighthood in May 1919, while Gandhi relinquished his Kaiser-i-Hind medal and launched the Non-Cooperation Movement in August 1920.
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The Rowlatt Act was officially designated the Anarchical and Revolutionary Crimes Act of 1919, passed by the Imperial Legislative Council on March 18, 1919.
The statute originated from the recommendations of the Sedition Committee presided over by British High Court judge Sir Sidney Rowlatt in 1918.
The legislation authorized the colonial administration to arrest and imprison political suspects for up to two years without formal indictment, legal representation, or judicial appeal.
Nationalist leaders characterized the repressive measures of the Rowlatt Act through the popular slogan 'No Dalil, No Vakil, No Appeal' ('No argument, no lawyer, no appeal').
Mahatma Gandhi founded the Satyagraha Sabha in Bombay to coordinate resistance against the legislation, organizing a pan-Indian general strike (hartal) on April 6, 1919.
The arrest and deportation of prominent Punjab nationalist leaders Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlew and Dr. Satyapal on April 9, 1919 triggered widespread civil protests in Amritsar.
The Jallianwala Bagh Massacre transpired on April 13, 1919, coinciding with the annual harvest festival of Baisakhi, in an enclosed public ground in Amritsar.
Brigadier-General Reginald Edward Harry Dyer deployed 50 riflemen from the 9th Gurkhas and 54th Sikhs, firing 1,650 rounds of ammunition into the trapped civilian crowd without warning.
Official British records compiled in the Hunter Report calculated 379 fatalities and over 1,200 wounded, whereas Indian National Congress investigations documented over 1,000 casualties.
In the aftermath of the massacre, General Dyer promulgated the demeaning 'Crawling Order' in Amritsar, forcing Indians to crawl on all fours along the street where a missionary had been assaulted.
Sir Michael O'Dwyer, the Lieutenant Governor of Punjab, sanctioned Dyer's actions and declared widespread martial law across Lahore, Gujranwala, and Amritsar districts.
Rabindranath Tagore formally renounced his British Knighthood (awarded in 1915) via a blistering letter addressed to Viceroy Lord Chelmsford on May 31, 1919.
Mahatma Gandhi returned the Kaiser-i-Hind gold medal conferred for his humanitarian ambulance corps service during the Boer War, initiating the Non-Cooperation Movement in August 1920.
The British government constituted the Disorders Inquiry Committee (Hunter Commission) in October 1919, which censured Dyer for grave error of judgment and compelled his resignation from the military.
Indian revolutionary Udham Singh assassinated former Punjab Lieutenant Governor Sir Michael O'Dwyer at Caxton Hall in London on March 13, 1940, in retaliation for the massacre.
In which year did the Jallianwala Bagh massacre take place in Amritsar?
Verified Explanation
The Jallianwala Bagh massacre occurred on 13 April 1919 when Acting Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer ordered troops to fire on unarmed civilians.
2ID: GK-HIST-00079
easyFreedom Struggle
In which city did the tragic Jallianwala Bagh massacre take place on 13 April 1919?
Verified Explanation
British troops commanded by Colonel Reginald Dyer opened fire on an unarmed gathering in Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar, Punjab.
3ID: GK-HIST-00166
easyFreedom Struggle & National Movement
The tragic Jallianwala Bagh massacre of 13 April 1919 took place in which city of Punjab?
Verified Explanation
On 13 April 1919 (Baisakhi day), Brigadier General Reginald Dyer ordered troops to open fire on an unarmed gathering in Jallianwala Bagh, Amritsar.
4ID: GK-DAYS-00643
hardHistorical Date Milestones
On which tragic date in 1919 did Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer order British troops to fire on peaceful unarmed civilians at Jallianwala Bagh on Baisakhi day?
Verified Explanation
The Jallianwala Bagh massacre occurred on April 13, 1919, in Amritsar, sparking nationwide outrage and prompting Tagore to renounce his knighthood.
5ID: GK-HIST-00007
easyFreedom Struggle & National Movement
The Jallianwala Bagh massacre occurred in Amritsar in which year?
Verified Explanation
The tragic massacre took place on 13 April 1919 under British Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer.
6ID: GK-HIST-00280
mediumBritish Colonial Rule
Which committee was appointed by the British Government in October 1919 to investigate the Jallianwala Bagh massacre?
Verified Explanation
The Disorders Inquiry Committee, commonly known as the Hunter Committee after its chairman Lord William Hunter, was appointed on 14 October 1919 to investigate the Jallianwala Bagh firing.
7ID: GK-PERS-00401
hardIndian Leaders Reformers
Which revolutionary patriot assassinated Sir Michael O'Dwyer (the former Lieutenant Governor of Punjab during the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre) at London's Caxton Hall on March 13, 1940?
Verified Explanation
Udham Singh avenged the Jallianwala Bagh massacre after 21 years by shooting O'Dwyer in London, stating his name in court as 'Ram Mohammad Singh Azad' representing communal unity.
8ID: GK-DAYS-00194
easyHistorical Date Milestones
On which date was the tragic Jallianwala Bagh massacre perpetrated by Colonel Reginald Dyer in Amritsar on Baisakhi day?
Verified Explanation
On April 13, 1919 (Baisakhi), British troops fired without warning upon thousands of unarmed civilians gathered at Jallianwala Bagh protesting the Rowlatt Act.
9ID: GK-DAYS-00219
easyHistorical Date Milestones
The tragic Jallianwala Bagh Massacre in Amritsar, ordered by Brigadier General Reginald Dyer, occurred on which festival date in 1919?
Verified Explanation
On 13 April 1919 (Baisakhi day), British troops opened fire on an unarmed gathering in Jallianwala Bagh protesting the arrest of Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlew and Dr. Satyapal.
10ID: GK-DAYS-00293
easyHistorical Date Milestones
On which date in 1919 did the tragic Jallianwala Bagh massacre take place in Amritsar on the day of the Baisakhi festival?
Verified Explanation
Acting Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer ordered troops to fire on unarmed civilians at Jallianwala Bagh on 13 April 1919.