Union Minister Ravneet Singh Bittu on Monday intensified his criticism of actor-singer Diljit Dosanjh over the newly released film Satluj, saying that it is a movie that distorted history and is "100 per cent misleading." The film has been widely seen as highly political and has generated strong reactions from Punjab to Pakistan.
As a result, Bittu said he lost his respect for Diljit Dosanjh, saying the actor may have been influenced by Khalistani ideology before he got involved with the project.
"I have lost all respect for Diljit Dosanjh. So he must have got some Khalistani influence so he agreed to do this movie," the Union minister said.
Bittu also called into question the timing of the film’s release and whether it was rushed to audiences without taking into account the historical sensitivities of the subject.
"They also released the movie in a rush. I don’t think I can respect him anymore. The facts in the movie are 100 percent misleading," he said.
The main objection of the minister is that the film portrays the events surrounding Operation Blue Star and Indira Gandhi’s assassination in the context of the former Prime Minister. Satluj, Bittu says, creates a narrative that connects these events but fails to give a full picture of the violence that took place in Punjab in that period.
He said while police actions and militants are depicted in the movie, we do not see the suffering of innocent civilians who lost their lives.
"In the movie, you only talk about the police and terrorists, but why don’t you talk about the innocent people who died?" Bittu asked.
Ahead of an ardas scheduled at Sri Akal Takht Sahib, the Union minister appealed to the Sikh religious body to also remember all innocent victims who died during those turbulent years.
"I appeal to the Sri Akal Takht Sahib, which is going to perform the ardas tomorrow, that it should also do the ardas for all the innocents," he said.
Bittu said that his criticism was directed at the film and not at Diljit Dosanjh personally. "We don’t have a problem with Diljit Dosanjh. We don’t want any politics over it,” he said, and said that he would meet the family of human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra.
The minister claimed that Khalra’s legacy and suffering had been used for cinematic purposes. Bittu, in line with Khalra's wife, proposed the establishment of an independent commission to determine the truth in the film.
"The wife of late Jaswant Singh Khalra has said that a commission should be formed. I agree with that demand. It is correct to form a commission so that we can all see the truth," he said.
Bittu also challenged national and international media organisations to provide evidence supporting claims that around 25,000 people were killed during the period referenced in the film.
"I challenge the national and international media to bring me the facts concerning the number of 25,000 killings, which is a fake number," he said.
The Union minister also targeted the Shiromani Akali Dal, saying that the party had decided to organise community screenings of Satluj. "I have stayed silent for many days, but this is the same Akali Dal which decided to broadcast it through community screenings,” Bittu said.
The debate on Satluj continues to fuel political and public discussion, and supporters say it is an important cinematic portrayal of Punjab’s troubled past, while critics say it’s a selective and inaccurate version of history. As the debate grows, the movie has become one of the most talked-about political and cultural releases of recent times.
