SAD will screen 'Satluj' in every village of Punjab: Badal

Chandigarh, Jul 8 (PTI) Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Wednesday said his party will screen the film 'Satluj', based on the life of human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, in every village and corner of Punjab. The film, which was earlier titled "Punjab '95" and details the life of activist Khalra in Punjab in the turbulent 1990s when the state was reeling under terrorism, was released uncut on ZEE5 on July 3 under a new title -- Satluj. However, the movie, which was stuck with the censors for more than three years, was removed from the platform two days later on July 5. Some Sikh religious groups and other outfits have begun publicly screening the film at gurdwaras and village grounds at some places in the state. In a post on X in Punjabi, Badal said, "In every village and corner of Punjab, the SAD will screen the film 'Satluj' based on inhuman atrocities inflicted on thousands of innocent Sikh youth and Sikh personalities like Shaheed Bhai Jaswant Singh Ji Khalra during the Congress regime, so that our children and future generations can be thoroughly acquainted with the oppression inflicted..." This film narrates the truth of that painful period which did not stop even after the "military attack" on Sachkhand Sri Harmandir Sahib, also known the Golden Temple, and the burning alive of thousands of unarmed innocent Sikh youth, women, elderly people and children in Delhi and other cities (anti-Sikh riots in '84), Badal said in the post. "Thousands of Sikh youth who were protesting against this heartbreaking massacre in Punjab were martyred in fake police encounters by the brutal Congress government. "Now the nation is being prevented from even telling the history of that painful massacre. The Shiromani Akali Dal will never allow this to happen," he said. On Tuesday, Punjab BJP said the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) has formed a three-member review committee to examine the circumstances surrounding the removal of the film "Satluj", starring actor and singer Diljit Dosanjh, from OTT platform ZEE5. In a statement, the Punjab BJP said the central government's action came on an appeal by the state party president Kewal Singh Dhillon. Several political parties and Sikh bodies in Punjab had on Monday slammed the removal of film "Satluj" from an OTT platform, saying the movie compels India to confront one of the state's "darkest chapters" and that history must be confronted with honesty, not buried through censorship. Directed by Honey Trehan, "Satluj" delves into the life of Khalra who investigated the cremation of thousands of unidentified bodies in Punjab during a 10-year period from 1984 to 1994. He disappeared in 1995. In 2005, four Punjab Police personnel were convicted for his abduction and murder and sentenced to seven years in prison. Two years later, the Punjab and Haryana High Court enhanced their sentence to life imprisonment. PTI SUN NB NB