We all remember The Jallianwala Bagh massacre, the central government even set up the Jallianwala Bagh National Memorial Trust in 1951 and the memorial was inaugurated by President Dr. Rajendra Prasad in 1961. Throughout the years Jallianwala Bagh underwent several repairs but the narrow alley leading to the Bagh remained untouched for almost 100 years. The entrance of nanakshahi bricks still evokes horrors of that day until July last year. The gallery was rebuilt leaving no trace of the old alley. The renovation of Amritsar’s Jallianwala Bagh has led to concerns of history being erased and citizens are upset about it.
PM Narendra Modi inaugurated the newly renovated Bagh on August 28th. As a part of the renovation, the walls of the narrow lane that Dyer led the soldiers through now have murals and human sculptures. Also, the lane is partially covered to prevent the birds from sitting on the sculptures.
However, the renovation has led to a huge outrage on Twitter. Professor of Global and Imperial History Kim A Wagner tweeted, “Devastated to hear that Jallianwala Bagh, site of the Amritsar Massacre of 1919, has been revamped –which means that the last traces of the event have effectively been erased. This is sadly just part of the general Disneyfication of the old city of Amritsar.”
Check out the reactions below:
What are your thoughts on this?
