Apology by British govt for Jallianwala Bagh massacre​ would assuage wounds of Indians: Punjab CM

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said on Wednesday that the British government should apologise for Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar.

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Amritsar: Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Wednesday welcomed London Mayor Sadiq Khan's statement the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar.

Khan said that the British government should apologise for the massacre which left hundreds dead.

The London Mayor, on his maiden visit to Amritsar, also paid tributes to those who died at the sprawling ground in the city.

"The British government should apologise for the Jallianwala Bagh shootings. Some people use the word 'massacre'," Khan told the media after visiting the Jallianwala Bagh complex.

"It was incredibly moving to visit Jallianwala Bagh. The tragedy in 1919 on Baisakhi is one we must never forget. It is time for the British government to finally apologize. Our thoughts are with all those who died," Khan wrote in the visitor's book after paying floral tributes at the memorial.

Khan went around the Jallianwala Bagh complex and saw the Martyr's Well and the bullet marks on the walls.

Reacting to his remarks, Singh tweeted, "I’m sure that such an act would, to some extent, assuage the wounds of Indians who suffered the turmoil of the struggle for independence."

I welcome London Mayor @SadiqKhan reported statement that UK government should apologize for Jallianwala Bagh massacre. I’m sure that such an act would, to some extent, assuage the wounds of Indians who suffered the turmoil of the struggle for independence. — Capt.Amarinder Singh (@capt_amarinder) December 6, 2017

Khan, who was on a three-city tour of India, visiting Mumbai, New Delhi and Amritsar, later crossed over to Pakistan from the Attari-Wagah land border.

Poignant visit to the Jallianwala Bagh memorial and gardens in Amritsar today, where I paid my respects to all those who lost their lives in the horrific Jallianwala Bagh tragedy in 1919. pic.twitter.com/sizGmRvpnt

— Sadiq Khan (@SadiqKhan) December 6, 2017

Honour to visit the most sacred place in the world for the Sikh faith - the beautiful Golden Temple here in Amritsar, India. pic.twitter.com/VDuuoo0lwH — Sadiq Khan (@SadiqKhan) December 6, 2017

Hundreds of Indians, including women, children and the aged, were shot dead by British troops led by Brigadier General Reginald Dyer on April 13, 1919.

The victims had no place to escape as the only narrow entrance was blocked by the troops. Colonial-era records put the death toll at around 400, while leaders of the country's freedom movement said over 1,000 were killed.

Though British monarch Queen Elizabeth and her husband Prince Phillip visited the Jallianwala Bagh in October 1997, no apology for the massacre was offered.

Former British PM David Cameroon visited Jallianwala Bagh in February 2013 and offered regrets over the killings, stopping short of a formal apology.

(With IANS inputs)