Outrage in India over revamp of colonial massacre site

dpa New Delhi Indians are outraged over the government revamp of a memorial park which was the scene of the bloodiest massacre in British history, with m...

dpa New Delhi Indians are outraged over the government revamp of a memorial park which was the scene of the bloodiest massacre in British history, with many claiming that a gaudy light show and a new gateway were “destroying history.” Prime Minister Narendra Modi opened the renovated Jallianwala Bagh complex in the northern city of Amritsar on Saturday. Hundreds of unarmed Indians were gunned down by British troops while attending a public meeting at the site on April 13, 1919.While some objected to a light and sound show at the site of the tragedy, most of the criticism was directed towards the refurbishment of a passage which British troops had blocked, preventing the victims’ escape. It has now been embellished with murals and sculptures and a shiny new floor has been laid.The Marytrs’ Well, which many people are believed to have jumped into in order to escape the bullets, has been covered with a transparent barrier.Rahul Gandhi, leader of the main opposition Congress party, joined the criticism on Tuesday by condemning the revamp as an “insult to martyrs” and “indecent cruelty.” Modi said the renovated complex “will remind the new generation about the history of this holy place” and it was “the responsibility of every nation to preserve its history.” But historians and other critics accused the government of trying to distort the country’s history.“Devastated to hear that Jallianwala Bagh... has been revamped - which means that the last traces of the event have effectively been erased,” historian Kim Wagner wrote on Twitter. He called it “part of the general Disneyfication of the old city of Amritsar.” “I don’t know who is the brain behind defacing the soul and body of Jallianwala Bagh. It was and will remain sombre and grave. People were mercilessly killed. To have a son et lumiere and that wretched design shows how removed we are from any level of refinement,” commentator Suhel Seth said.Ruling party lawmaker Shwait Malik, a member of the Jallianwala Trust defended the makeover.“These sculptures in the lane will make visitors conscious of those who walked in on that day... Earlier, people walked this narrow lane without knowing its history, now they will walk with history.” The massacre, carried out on orders by general Reginald Dyer, is considered to have sparked the Indian independence movement.The British government at the time put the death toll at 379 while Indian freedom fighters said nearly 1,000 people died.