CHANDIGARH: The political row over Diljit Dosanjh's Satluj has intensified ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections, with Union Minister Ravneet Singh Bittu challenging the film's makers to produce documentary evidence backing its claim of 25,000 missing or illegally cremated bodies in Punjab or publicly clarify that the figure is not officially verified.
Bittu also questioned the film's portrayal of Punjab's militancy era, alleging that the sacrifices of security personnel and victims of terrorism had been underrepresented.
Bittu also posted video clips of dead, clean-shaven men from the militancy era in Punjab on X, drawing concern from leaders across the BJP and Congress.
"If this figure is based merely on an estimate or allegation, why has it been projected as an established historical fact? Why were viewers not informed that this number has not been conclusively established by any final judicial determination?" Bittu said.
He added, "Why were massacres of innocent Hindus, bus passengers, shopkeepers, government employees, labourers and ordinary citizens brutally killed by terrorists not depicted with the same intensity? Why has the immense sacrifice of Punjab Police personnel, security forces and countless brave citizens who fought terrorism been underplayed?"
"We will examine all appropriate legal and constitutional remedies available to ensure that historical facts are not misrepresented before the nation," he added.
A senior BJP leader said the videos posted by Bittu were not in the right direction, adding that the painful past should be buried and people should move forward instead of providing fodder for a repeat of history.
"Selective videos and pictures do not tell the whole truth. The state never witnessed communal clashes, even during the peak of the 1984 riots," he said.
Another senior BJP leader said that if Bittu was genuinely concerned about peace in the state, he should refrain from selectively portraying Punjab's violent past.
"If he is keen to show the reality to future generations, he should get a project done on Punjab Files and stop the screenings of Satluj," the leader added.
Punjab BJP president Kewal Dhillon refused to comment on the issue, while former state BJP chief Sunil Jakhar said the matter was very sensitive.
Congress MLA from Jalandhar Cantonment, Pargat Singh, alleged that the BJP wanted to disturb Punjab's hard-earned peace and that Bittu was pursuing a political agenda of polarising voters.
On the other hand, Shiromani Akali Dal (Punar Surjit) challenged Bittu and All India Anti Terrorist Front chairman Maninderjit Singh Bitta to make public documentary evidence supporting claims that 35,000 Hindus were killed during militancy in the state. The party also demanded a "truth commission" to establish an official account of the violence.
Senior vice-president Karnail Singh Peer Mohammad said that since Bittu had sought documentary proof from the makers of the film for the claim relating to 25,000 unidentified bodies, the public also had the right to know the basis for the claim that 35,000 Hindus were killed. He demanded the constitution of a "truth commission" to establish how many Sikh youths were killed in alleged fake encounters and how many civilians lost their lives during militancy.
Ahead of the July 14 congregation called by the Jathedar of the Akal Takht at Harike Pattan, Paramjit Kaur Khalra urged the Jathedar to constitute a People's Commission to establish the actual number of enforced disappearances, unidentified bodies and those killed in alleged fake police encounters during the militancy period.
In a post on X, she appealed to Jathedar Kuldeep Singh Gargaj to lead an impartial effort to uncover the truth about alleged human rights violations during the 1980s and 1990s.
Referring to the June 1984 military action at the Golden Temple, the November 1984 anti-Sikh violence and the subsequent years of militancy, she said the issues of unidentified bodies, torture and thousands of alleged fake encounters still awaited justice and accountability.
Khalra alleged that successive governments had failed to deliver justice to the victims. She said the Congress government was responsible for excesses during militancy and accused Shiromani Akali Dal governments of failing to ensure accountability and extending support to police officers accused in human rights violation cases.
She further alleged that the present Aam Aadmi Party government had failed to bring convicted police personnel to justice and also accused the BJP-led Union government over reported targeted killings abroad.
Supporting Kaur's demand for a commission of inquiry, Bittu called for an independent, impartial and time-bound investigation into the killings of innocent civilians, bus passengers, police personnel and others during the years of militancy. He said all facts should be examined through due process and that the truth should emerge through a credible institutional mechanism.
Furthermore, Member of Parliament from Faridkot Sarabjeet Singh Khalsa, son of Beant Singh, one of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's assassins, announced Rs 1 crore from his MPLADS fund for a memorial for Khalra, saying it should be built on the banks of the Satluj near Harike Pattan, where Khalra was allegedly killed.
Khalsa, who is associated with Akali Dal Waris Punjab De, said the Punjab government should provide land for the memorial as MPLADS funds cannot be spent on private land. He said he would raise the issue of Khalra's killing during the upcoming Parliament session and seek justice.
He added that Harike Pattan was the most appropriate site for the memorial as Khalra was allegedly killed on the banks of the Satluj.
