Which one of the following events, was characterised by Montague as ‘Preventive Murder’?
- AKilling of INA activists
- BMassacre of Jallianwala BaghCorrect
- CShooting of the Mahatma
- DShooting of Curzon-Wythe
Explanation
The correct answer is B because Edwin Montague, who was the Secretary of State for India at the time, described the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre of 1919 in these specific terms.
Following the incident, where General Dyer ordered troops to fire on a peaceful crowd in Amritsar, a debate took place in the British Parliament. Montague was deeply critical of Dyers actions, viewing the use of excessive force as a grave error that undermined British moral authority. He used the phrase preventive murder to characterize the slaughter, arguing that Dyers claim of acting to prevent a future rebellion did not justify the cold blooded killing of innocent civilians.
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