UK’s Labour Party pledges Jallianwala Bagh apology

LONDON: Britain’s Opposition Labour Party on Thursday launched its manifesto for the December 12 General Election with a pledge to institute an audit into the country’s colonial past, which would include an apology to India for the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar 100 years ago.

Former British Prime Minister Theresa May had stopped short of a formal apology earlier this year when she expressed deep regret for the colonial era attack on Vaisakhi to coincide with its 100th anniversary this year.

In the 107-page manifesto titled It’s

Time for Real Change’ launched by Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, the party has pledged to go further on the issue and apologise. The document also commits Labour to constitute a judge-led inquiry into Britain’s “injustices of the past”, including a public review of the country’s role in Operation Blue Star referred to as the Amritsar massacre.

In 2014, declassified UK government documents had revealed that British military advice was given to Indian forces prior to Indian Army intervention at the Golden Temple. There have been calls for a public inquiry into the exact nature of that advice from some British Sikh groups over the years.