PM Modi pays tribute to martyrs of Jallianwala Bagh massacre

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday paid tribute to "martyrs" who lost their lives in the Jallianwala Bagh massacre and said, "their valour will inspire Indians for the years to come".

"I bow to those martyrs who were killed mercilessly in Jallianwala Bagh on this day. We will never forget their courage and sacrifice. Their valour will inspire Indians for the years to come," the Prime Minister said in a tweet.

The Prime Minister also shared a picture of his earlier visit to Jallianwala Bagh memorial.

The Jallianwala Bagh massacre took place on 13 April 1919 when troops of the British Indian Army, under the command of Colonel Reginald Dyer, fired machine guns into a crowd of unarmed protesters and pilgrims who had gathered in Jallianwala Bagh in Punjab's Amritsar on the occasion of Baisakhi.

The crowd had assembled peacefully at the venue to condemn the arrest of two national leaders -- Satya Pal and Saifuddin Kitchlew -- when they were fired at indiscriminately by General Dyer and his men.

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.