Union Minister of State for Railways and Food Processing Industries Ravneet Singh Bittu has broken his silence on the controversy surrounding the film 'Satluj', starring Diljit Dosanjh, which was removed from the OTT platform ZEE5 amid allegations by the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Punjab that Bittu engineered its removal. In an exclusive interview with The Tribune, Bittu did not directly address the AAP's charge but mounted a detailed defence of his grandfather, assassinated former Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh, arguing that the film offers a 'one-sided narrative' of Punjab's militancy years and that any honest reckoning with the period must account for the violence unleashed by militant groups, not only the actions of the state.
Bittu Calls for Complete Truth
“Punjab deserves the whole truth, not half the story,” Bittu said. A third-generation Congressman who switched to the BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, which he unsuccessfully fought from his erstwhile Ludhiana seat, Bittu said the film's treatment of the period skirted the full complexity of what Punjab went through in the 1980s and early 1990s. He pointed to human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, whose disappearance and killing remain central to the film's narrative, asking why Khalra was able to continue his work and travel abroad during Beant Singh's tenure if the government was suppressing dissent as depicted. “That question also deserves an honest answer,” he said.
Militancy Has No Religion
The Union Minister was emphatic that militancy could not be tied to any single community or faith. “Militancy has no religion. Violence should never be associated with any faith or community,” he said, adding that the weapons militants carried were not meant for peaceful protests. “Those weapons were used against police personnel, public servants, elected representatives and countless innocent civilians. We must remember all victims, not just a select few,” he said.
Beant Singh's Mandate: Restoring Peace
Bittu said his grandfather's government had a singular early mandate: restoring peace after years of bloodshed, before it could turn to governance. “Beant Singh inherited a Punjab that was bleeding. His government's stated objective was to restore law, order and normalcy so that ordinary people could live without fear,” he said, adding that his legacy ought to be judged “in the full context of that period”. He said security measures were paired with a democratic revival, citing the conduct of panchayat and local body elections as a deliberate effort to return power to the grassroots. “Peace is not restored by security measures alone,” he said.
Allegations Require Evidence
On allegations of atrocities during the period, including against women, Bittu said such claims required scrutiny. “Any allegation of widespread atrocities... should be backed by credible evidence and verified records. History should be discussed with facts, not assumptions,” he said. Bittu said the toll of the militancy years went beyond the loss of lives. “What did years of militancy ultimately leave Punjab with? Thousands of lives lost, families destroyed, businesses ruined, investment driven away, economic hardship and a generation that paid an enormous price,” he said.
Parallels with Present-Day Violence
Drawing a parallel with present-day anxieties over gangsters targeting ordinary citizens, he said the fear during the militancy era was of a far greater magnitude. “Punjab cannot afford to return to any form of violence,” he said. Turning the debate back on the film's defenders, Bittu, who is considered close to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, posed a direct question. “My simple question is: Do you support Khalistan today? If the answer is no, then we should also reject the violence that was carried out in its name and work together for Punjab's future.” He cautioned against nostalgia clouding memory. “It is easy to romanticise the past once peace has returned. But those who lived through those years remember the fear, uncertainty and daily violence,” he said.
Real Tribute: Preventing Recurrence
Asked what he considered the appropriate way to remember the period, Bittu said Punjab's real tribute lay in preventing a recurrence, not in dramatising it. “The real tribute to Punjab is not to glorify conflict, but to ensure that such a chapter never repeats itself,” he said.
