Satluj is a chilling reminder of what happens when a state is allowed to become judge, jury and executioner, asserts Sreeju Sudhakaran.
Former Punjab Police DSP Jaspal Singh, a life convict in the 1995 abduction and murder of human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, has been reported untraceable at the address provided in his jail records after being released on interim bail in May 2023, sparking a political controversy.
Diljit Dosanjh's film 'Satluj', based on human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, has been made unavailable on ZEE5 in India just two days after its release, following a prolonged censorship battle.
'...Or will we take a positive approach and learn from those mistakes so that it is not repeated in future?'
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has formed a three-member review committee to investigate the removal of the film "Satluj" from the ZEE5 OTT platform. The film, which depicts the life of activist Jaswant Singh Khalra during Punjab's turbulent 1990s, was briefly available before being taken down, sparking criticism from political parties and Sikh bodies.
Leading star Diljit Dosanjh anticipated a potential ban during a live stream, urging fans to watch or download it quickly. Following its removal, he posted a resilient response, stating, 'I challenge the darkness'.
A central government committee has upheld the ban on the Diljit Dosanjh-starrer film Satluj, citing concerns over India's sovereignty and integrity, sparking political debate in Punjab.
Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday visited former Defence Minister Jaswant Singh who is in coma in Army's Research and Referral Hospital after suffering head injuries.
Singh met Congress president Rahul Gandhi before joining the party.
The BJP said that the decision will not have any impact on the party's prospects in western Rajasthan.
Miffed at Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's remarks that Parliament should not pre-judge the 2G issue, Bharatiya Janata Party leader Jaswant Singh on Tuesday said the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the matter should be wound up.
He said he was yet to take a decision on whether to join the Congress or not.
'Propaganda films that the BJP makes, whether it's The Kerala Story or others, are shown wherever elections occur as part of their propaganda. But real-time human rights violations... If such things don't come on a public platform, how will correction occur?'
The Indian government is considering amending the IT Rules 2021 to introduce compulsory certification for films released on OTT platforms, following a controversy involving the film 'Satluj' which was released without clearances and later taken down due to national security concerns.
Singh, a former Army officer, had been ill after a fall at his home in August 2014 and was admitted to the Army Research and Referral Hospital. He had been in and out of the hospital and was admitted again in June this year.
Jaswant Singh may have fallen to political designs within his party. But his lack of connect with his voters is bound to make the Barmer contest tougher for him to win.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday night expelled its veteran leader Jaswant Singh, who is contesting the Lok Sabha poll as an Independent in Rajasthan's Barmer constituency against the party's official nominee, after he refused to withdraw his candidature on the last day of withdrawal of nominations.
A 28-year-old man in Uttar Pradesh died after being attacked, with his family alleging the involvement of the village head and others in the assault.
Congress leader Manvendra Singh's wife was killed and the former MP and his son were injured when their SUV met with an accident in Alwar on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, officials said.
A book on the founder of Pakistan, Mohammad Ali Jinnah titled, - "Jinnah: India - Partition - Independence" penned by senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Jaswant Singh, was released in New Delhi on Monday.
Jaswant Singh, who was unceremoniously ousted from the Bharatiya Janata Party for 'attacking' the party's 'core ideology,' had described the saffron organisation as 'an open field where one gets to kick an ideological football everyday.'
The meeting assumes significance in the context of an uneasy relationship between the BJP and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam.
Former Bharatiya Janata Party leader Jaswant Singh is in a critical condition after being operated upon for a head injury at the Army Research and Referral Hospital in New Delhi following a fall at his residence. Doctors at the hospital said that examination showed he was in a state of coma.
Police on Thursday registered a case against senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Jaswant Singh and nine other party leaders including some Rajasthan ministers for allegedly using opium in a social function recently.
Director Honey Trehan's film Punjab '95, based on human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra's life, remains stuck with the Censor Board, facing over 127 cuts.
Finance Minister Jaswant Singh unveiled a populist Budget on Friday with a slew of measures to make life easier for the poor and the middle classes.
In his first speech at Rajasthan's Barmer, from where expelled Bhartiya Janata Party leader Jaswant Singh is contesting as an independent, party's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi did not utter a single word against the former party stalwart.
Former Union minister Jaswant Singh on Thursday formally returned to the Bharatiya Janata Party, ten months after he was summarily expelled for praising Pakistan founder M A Jinnah in his book.Singh was welcomed back to the BJP by senior leader L K Advani and party president Nitin Gadkari. Gadkari had met Jaswant in New Delhi last week before leaving for the party national executive in Patna to discuss his entry into the party.
Accusing the Left Front government in West Bengal of ignoring Darjeeling Hills, senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Jaswant Singh on Friday demanded the creation of a separate Gorkhaland. Singh also demanded more funds under the Cyclone Aila package. Initiating a debate on the Finance Bill in the Lok Sabha, the Darjeeling Member of Parliament wondered, "What wrong have the Gorkhas done not to deserve a separate state."
In summary the BJP cannot be faulted for acting in its own interest. Jaswant Singh's expulsion was an act, Machiavellian in its concept that combined political expediency with shrewd political insight; a move designed to shore up the sagging image and morale of a fractured entity that had lost its verve and was drifting aimlessly.
In the BJP veteran's home district, some feel he has been harmed by his party, while some think he never gave back to the place he belonged to, and then there are some who believe son Manvendra Singh will have a tough time living up to his name.
In a sudden development, senior Parliamentarian Jaswant Singh has resigned as chairman of the prestigious Public Accounts Committee, which he had refused to quit when he had a bitter parting of ways with the Bharatiya Janata Party four months ago. His resignation raised questions on whether there was any possibility of a rapprochement with the BJP, but the 71-year-old leader ruled that out, saying he did not take the action under 'any pressure' or with 'some calculation'.
Jaswant has said that since the PM was a senior minister in that cabinet, he should address the issue.
During Vajpayee's tenure, he was there as an indispensable insider, witness to every action that had an impact on history: Pokhran-II (nuclear tests in 1998), the 1999 Kargil conflict between India and Pakistan, the Indo-Pak Agra Summit in 2001, intense engagement with the United States on nuclear issues besides the Kandahar hijack.
Former Bharatiya Janata Party leader Jaswant Singh continues to be on life support systems after he was operated upon for a head injury at the Army Research and Referral Hospital in New Delhi after he had a fall at his residence.
