Union minister Bittu challenges ‘Satluj’ makers to prove ‘25,000 missing’ claim

2 min readLudhianaUpdated: Jul 12, 2026 02:00 PM IST

Union Minister Ravneet Singh Bittu. (File Photo)

Wading into the controversy over the ‘removal’ of Diljit Dosanjh-starrer Satluj from an OTT platform, Union Minister Ravneet Singh Bittu Sunday stated that the makers of the film cannot use the shield of creative freedom to present disputed claims as established history.

“I throw an open challenge to the makers and director of Satluj to place before the people of Punjab all documentary evidence, government records, judicial findings, and authenticated data on the basis of which the film claims that 25,000 people went missing or were illegally cremated,” the minister said in a statement.

“If this figure is based merely on an estimate or an allegation, why has it been presented in the film as an undisputed historical fact? Why were audiences not informed that this number has not been conclusively established by any judicial commission? The people of Punjab deserve answers to these questions. What is even more disturbing is that the history of Punjab’s militancy era has been presented in a one-sided manner,” added Bittu.

The minister said if the makers of Satluj failed to make public documentary evidence within a reasonable timeframe, he would consider all available constitutional and legal options “to ensure that history is not presented before the nation in a manner contrary to facts.”

“Punjab’s history cannot be rewritten on the basis of selective narratives. Truth must always prevail over propaganda, facts over fiction, and evidence over emotions,” the minister remarked.

Bittu also asked why the targeted killing of Hindus, bus passengers, shopkeepers, government employees, labourers, and other ordinary citizens by militants in Punjab was “not depicted with the same seriousness and extent?”

Just two days after it premiered on streaming service ZEE5 on July 3, Satluj, a movie based on the life of human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, was made unavailable in India. Later, it was also taken down from ZEE5’s international library.