Punjab parties criticise removal of Diljit Dosanjh's 'Satluj' from OTT

Political parties and Sikh organisations in Punjab on Monday condemned the removal of Diljit Dosanjh-starrer Satluj from the ZEE5 streaming platform, describing it as an attempt to suppress one of the state's darkest chapters and demanding that the film be restored.

Directed by Honey Trehan, Satluj chronicles the life of human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, who exposed the alleged secret cremation of thousands of unidentified bodies in Punjab before being abducted in 1995. He was never seen again. Four Punjab Police personnel were later convicted for his abduction and murder, with their life sentences upheld after the Punjab and Haryana High Court enhanced the punishment.

Originally titled Punjab '95, the film remained stuck with censors for more than three years after its makers refused to accept 127 cuts suggested by the Central Board of Film Certification. It was eventually released without cuts but was taken down from ZEE5 on Sunday evening, with the platform informing viewers that it was no longer available in India.

The move drew sharp criticism across the political spectrum. Punjab's ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) demanded the film's immediate restoration, saying younger generations should be allowed to learn about the state's history without "political censorship".

AAP leader Baltej Pannu alleged that the BJP and Congress were working together "to erase Congress's black history in Punjab and prevent the younger generation from learning the truth about one of the darkest chapters in the state's past".

"The younger generation wants to know what happened in Punjab during 1978, 1984, the 1990s and other crucial periods. If they are denied books and documentaries, films become an important way of preserving historical truth," he said.

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal called the removal "an assault on our collective memory, truth, and freedom of expression".

"I strongly condemn this move. Punjab deserves to confront its past with honesty, not suppression," he said in a post on X. "A powerful film that courageously unveils Punjab's painful history and honours the supreme sacrifice of S. Jaswant Singh Ji Khalra cannot be silenced this way."

Punjab BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon said he was seeking details about the decision and that the party was taking up the matter.

Senior Congress leader Sukhpal Singh Khaira also criticised the move, calling it "a fact-based film" centred on police brutality and Khalra's disappearance. "We all know about the gross human rights violations prevalent then in Punjab and the subsequent mysterious disappearance of Prof. Jaswant Singh Khalra. The removal of this fact-based film is in contradiction to the decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India that upheld the conviction of guilty police officers responsible for the abduction of Prof. Khalra," Khaira said.

He urged the government to restore the film so that "present and future generations know what a police state is".

AAP MP Malvinder Singh Kang said censorship becomes "the most dangerous weapon" when a nation begins to fear its own history. Comparing the treatment of Satluj with other politically sensitive films, Kang said The Kashmir Files and The Kerala Story had been promoted and screened without obstruction, while a film dealing with alleged human rights violations in Punjab had disappeared from an OTT platform.

Congress MP Dharamvira Gandhi described the removal as "unfortunate" and an attack on freedom of expression.

Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee chief secretary Kulwant Singh Manan said people had a right to know what happened during that period in Punjab. "The film should not have been removed from the platform. The government should ensure that people see this film. What is wrong if reality is shown and people come to know of what happened during those days in Punjab?" he said.

AAP Punjab chief spokesperson Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal accused the BJP-led Centre of trying to bury Punjab's past. "The film narrates the true story of Punjab's tragic and dark period, a truth that the rulers sitting in Delhi want to bury forever," he said, adding that Khalra had exposed the alleged killing of thousands of innocent youths in fake police encounters and their cremation as unidentified bodies.

"Banning such a historic film that presents the truth is extremely shameful. This ban proves that the Central Government is rubbing salt into Punjab's wounds," Dhaliwal said.

SAD leader Bikram Singh Majithia said suppressing the film would not erase history. "History cannot be banned. The more you try to suppress it, the stronger Diljit's Satluj will flow," he said.

The film's release has faced repeated hurdles. It was dropped from the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival line-up without an official explanation, and a planned worldwide release in February 2025 also failed to materialise despite being cleared without cuts outside India.

With PTI inputs