Amritsar, February 20
British Prime Minister David Cameron today termed the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre as a deeply shameful event in British history, but stopped short of a public apology.

UK PM David Cameron pays floral tributes to victims of Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar. Photo: Sameer Sehgal

The British PM and his delegation paid tribute to the martyrs at the Jallianwala Bagh at 10.45 am and remained there till 11.05 am. Cameron kneeled down barefoot and laid wreaths at the Flame of Liberty memorial. He also observed one-minute silence on the occasion.

The British PM wrote in the visitors’ book: “This was a deeply shameful act in British history-one that Winston Churchill rightly described at that time as monstrous. We must never forget what happened here (with word ‘never’ underlined). And in remembering we must ensure that the United Kingdom stands up for the right of peaceful protest around the world.”

The last leg of Cameron’s three-day visit to India aimed at forging deeper economic ties and wooing around 1.5 million British voters of Indian origin ahead of the 2015 election in his country.

With today’s visit, Cameron has become the first serving British Prime Minister to visit Jallianwala Bagh.

In 1997, Queen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, visited the massacre site and laid wreaths at the Flame of Liberty memorial.

Around 1,000 peaceful protesters were gunned down by British troops on the orders of General Reginald Dyre at Jallianwalla Bagh on April 13, 1919.