The Government of India rushed the Rowlatt Bills through the Imperial Legislative Council in March 1919. So, Gandhi called for a nation-wide hartal or strike, a Rowlatt Satyagraha, to be observed on 6th April, 1919. The British were taken aback by the popularity of the hartal. On 10th April, the Amritsar Police fired upon a group of peaceful protestors. This sparked violent protests and martial law was imposed upon Punjab. On the festival of Baisakhi, 13th April, 1919, in Jallianwala Bagh, a public garden in Amritsar; a crowd of non-violent protestors gathered. General Dyer stormed the garden with his troops, blocked the only entrance, and without any warning, ordered open fire at the unarmed crowd. The massacre shook the Indian subcontinent and members of the British Government as well.