Overview
- The film Satluj, which premiered on ZEE5 on July 3, was removed from the platform’s India catalogue two days later after the Centre invoked emergency IT powers and ordered a formal review.
- Union minister Ravneet Singh Bittu on July 12 publicly challenged the filmmakers to produce documentary, judicial or official records to substantiate the film’s repeated claim of 25,000 missing or illegally cremated bodies and warned of legal remedies if evidence is not produced.
- Unauthorised community screenings have been held across Punjab and Jammu and a letter petition by Advocate Vineet Jindal has been filed in the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking immediate action to stop those showings.
- Government sources say Satluj was released without completing the Central Board of Film Certification process and an inter-departmental panel recommended continuing restrictions, while producers are reported to be preparing legal challenges to the takedown.
- The dispute revives long-running debates over Jaswant Singh Khalra’s allegations, which are contested in scale by researchers and officials, and has split political and community actors in Punjab as elections approach, raising risks to local peace and to families seeking official accountability.