The Qutb Road Massacre was the shooting of several Indian protesters by German troops under the order of Field Marshal Walther Model in 1947. The Massacre came shortly after German troops subdued India. Indian resistance leader Mohandas Gandhi had requested Model remove his troops from India. Model naturally refused. In response, Gandhi led a group of people through the streets of New Delhi, in violation of German restrictions. German troops sought to stop the march, but Gandhi's unflappable determination confused them. As the march approached Qutb Road, Model arrived personally to stop events. He ordered the march to disperse. When they refused, Model laid a handkerchief on the ground, and warned Gandhi that anyone who passed it would be shot.
Gandhi was prepared to continue the march and lose his life. However, his followers were overeager, and briskly moved past him. When the first men reached the handkerchief, Model ordered his men to fire. Gandhi and his second, Jawaharlal Nehru, were able to escape. Model ordered the deaths of the wounded.
Gandhi took for granted that Model would be censured by the Nazi government. He was horrified when a radio broadcast by William Joyce announced that Reichminister Reinhard Heydrich had congratulated Model on his actions. Heydrich also warned that similar protests in the future would not be met with the same "leniency."
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