April 23, 1930 massacre: ANP asks UK govt to apologise

PESHAWAR: Central president of the Awami National Party (ANP) Asfandyar Wali Khan paid tributes to the victims of the Qissa Khwani Bazaar massacre and asked the British government to apologize to the Pakhtuns for barbarism it committed on April 23, 1930 in Peshawar.

In his statement on Tuesday, the ANP leader said that the British troops had killed about 400 Khudai Khidmatgar and local people in Peshawar in historic Qissa Khwani Bazaar on April 23, 1930 who had staged a peaceful protest against the British rule in Peshawar.

“April 23 is a black day in our history when the Imperialist forces had opened indiscriminate fire over peaceful people,” Asfandyar Wali Khan said and added that more than 550 people were also injured in the same incident.

The ANP leader said about 94 years had passed since the bloody incident but the British government had neither provided justice to the innocent families nor sought apology for barbarism.

“The Qissa Khwani massacre was a tragic incident but the new generation was kept in the dark about the barbaric rule of the then British rule in the united India,” he said and added that such incidents should be investigated and included in the textbooks. He said many of the dead bodies were either thrown in the river or burnt to show a small number of the victims.

The ANP leader paid tributes to Veer Chandra Singh who was leading Gurhwali Rifles Regiment and defied the British Army officer order to open fire on the peaceful crowd of citizens in Qissa Khwani Bazaar. “For not obeying the order, Veer Chandra Singh was imprisoned for 11 years under British rule,” he added.

Asfandyar Wali Khan said due to the struggle and sacrifices of the non-violent Khudai Khidmatgar, the British Imperialists quit India the local people got freedom and a sovereign state.“The Awami National Party will continue its political struggle for the rights and protection of people and soil,” Asfandyar Wali Khan concluded.