Q. Consider the following statements with respect to the Rowlatt Act:

1. It was passed in order to suppress the masses angered by the Jallianwala Bagh massacre.
2. It effectively suspended the legal principle of ‘Habeas Corpus’.

Which of the above is / are correct?
Answer: Only 2
Notes: Rowlatt Act was passed to repress the Indians and to curb nationalists and revolutionaries. This Act authorized the Government to imprison any person without trial and conviction in a court of law. It met with protests throughout the country. In that order, a large but unarmed crowd had gathered on April 13, 1919 at Amritsar in Jallianwala Bagh to protest against the arrest of their popular leaders, Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlew and Dr. Satyapal. General Dyer, the military commander of Amritsar decided to terrorize the people. So, he surrounded the Bagh with his unit, blocked the exit with his troops and ordered his men to shoot into the trapped crowd. Thus, statement 1 is incorrect. Rowlatt Act was passed to repress the Indians and to curb nationalists and revolutionaries. This Act authorized the Government to imprison any person without trial and conviction in a court of law for an unlimited period of time. The act thus enabled the government to effectively suspend the right of Habeas Corpus. So, statement 2 is correct.