Documents that detail horrors of Jalianwala put on display in Lahore to mark 100 years of tragedy
Lahore, Apr 21: For the first time in its history, Pakistan has put on display rare documents of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre to mark its 100th anniversary.
The six-day exhibition showcasing about 70 historical documents related to the Jallianwala Bagh massacre and Martial Law in Punjab in April 1919 opened at the Lahore Heritage Museum here on Saturday. A year earlier, Pakistan had exhibited the archives of the trial of revolutionary leader Bhagat Singh in Lahore.
The massacre took place at Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar (undivided Punjab) during the Baisakhi festival on April 13, 1919, when troops of the British Indian Army under the command of Colonel Reginald Dyer opened fire at a crowd of people holding a pro-independence demonstration, leaving scores dead.
"The government has decided to showcase archives of different historical events and famous personalities so that people could know what had happened during that period," Abbas Chughtai, Pakistan's Punjab province government's archive department director, told PTI.
Chughtai said that the archived documents are displayed to mark the massacre's centenary year and the practice will continue in coming days as well.
"We are also planning to exhibit the documents related to the work of Rudyard Kipling," he said.
"We urge people to visit the Lahore Heritage Museum and go through the pages of history," he said, adding that the exhibition will go on till April 26.
The documents include different number of Martial Law Order, copy of the ordinance regarding continuance of trials held by Commissions and Summary Courts, expulsion order of 47 students of different colleges of Lahore in connection with disturbances and a copy of the questions raised by Lord Sydenhamin House of Lords, England about sentence passed by martial law commission to Muhammad Bashir, whose proclamation was an immediate cause in bringing a large mob to Jallianwala Bagh on April 13, 1919.
A copy of assistant commissioner Murree's letter about sending European and Anglo Indians to Murree from Lahore for their safety during the disturbances, a copy of the report about outbreak of disturbances in Lahore, Amritsar, Kasur, Ahmedabad and Patna and the Rawalpindi governor's letter to the chief secretary to declare martial law in Jhelum to teach the people discipline as a punishment for throwing stone on Mr Barton's car, the deputy commissioner of Rawalpindi also features the exhibition.
About the death toll in the massacre, the 3rd September letter of deputy commissioner Amritsar in the documents reported the final figure of death at Jallianwala Bagh to 291 including two women and five children, a copy of notice both in Urdu and Hindi language informing them about how many were killed in the massacre, a letter of the deputy commissioner informing about whipping of school boys in Lahore.
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Sri Lanka recovers 87 bodies from Iranian warship sunk off its coast by US submarine
Colombo (AP): A US submarine sank an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka, and Sri Lanka's navy said Wednesday it recovered 87 bodies and rescued 32 people.
The Iranian vessel that was sunk in the Indian Ocean was the Islamic Republic's “prize ship,” US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said at a Pentagon news briefing. Hegseth said it was the first sinking of an enemy ship with a torpedo by the US since World War II.
Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath told Parliament that its navy received information that the IRIS Dena, with 180 people on board, was in distress and sinking. The island nation sent ships and air force planes on a rescue mission, he said.
Navy spokesman Commander Buddhika Sampath said by the time navy ships reached the location, there was no sign of the ship and “there were only some oil patches and life rafts. We found people floating on the water.”
He said the 32 people rescued were admitted to a hospital in the seaside town of Galle on the Sri Lanka's southern coast. The bodies recovered were being brought to land, he said.
Dr Anil Jasinghe, a top health ministry official, said one of those rescued is in critical condition, seven are receiving emergency treatment and others are being treated for minor injuries.
The IRIS Dena — one of Iran's newest warships — is a Moudge-class frigate that patrols in deep water for the Iranian navy. It is armed with heavy guns, surface-to-air missiles, anti-ship missiles and torpedoes. It also carries one helicopter.
The frigate was the centerpiece of a two-ship international tour in 2023 that included port calls in countries including South Africa and Brazil. It was accompanied by the support ship IRIS Makran, a converted oil tanker.
The US Treasury Department included both ships on a sanctions designation in February 2023 along with eight executives of an Iranian drone manufacturer that supplied the weapons to Russia for use against civilian targets in Ukraine.
At least 17 Iranian naval vessels have been sunk during the ongoing war, said US Adm Brad Cooper, who leads the American military's Central Command.
“We are also sinking the Iranian navy — the entire navy,” he said in a video message.
