Jallianwala Bagh: Selfish wall carvings, selfies threaten sanctity of memorial

The Jallianwala Bagh that holds so much historical significance, is itself in need of preservation.

Scribblings in one of the walls behind the red stone in Jallianwala Bagh (Express Photo)

But for the fences around the bullet-riddled red stone and the ‘Martyrs well’, the main attraction so to speak — the sanctity of the place — seems to be under threat.

The Jallianwala Bagh memorial hosts hundreds of visitors every day, many of whom are locals who come there to relax. Others are curious tourists who can’t help but try to capture the mood of the place in selfies. For some, it is also a picnic spot. The entry is free and accessibility easy so you have much of it to yourself, to treat it as you like.

Visitors relaxing in the garden (Express Photo)

Selfies taken near historic sites have had their share of criticism. Actor Priyanka Chopra has also taken the brunt of it when she posed in front of a Holocaust Museum in Berlin and later deleted it after being called out for being inappropriate and disrespectful of the millions of Jews put in concentration camps and killed under Hitler’s dictatorship.

But in the Jallianwala Bagh selfies are rarely condemned. The memorial is also a tourist spot, located in the middle of a busy marketplace, easily accessible and mostly unguarded.

Spread across 6-7 acres, the Jallianwala Bagh has detailed accounts of its history on every turn — the narrow lane from which General Dyer commanded his troops to shoot, a museum, an eternal flame to pay homage to the martyrs, even bushes cropped to resemble Dyers’ men.

Bullet marks on the red stone that dominate the Jallianwala Bagh and its history. (Express Photo)

The juxtaposition of the tragic past with the present liveliness, however, fails to escape notice. The Jallianwala Bagh, its historic significance notwithstanding, is, after all, a well-done garden in a bustling city. It has come to resemble the contrast between pre and post-colonial India and in an anecdotal fashion, plays an undisputed role in the lives of its people.