‘Punjab ’95’ is a political thriller starring Diljit Dosanjh in the lead role. The release of the film, based on the life and death of activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, has been fraught with hurdles. Earlier, the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) had proposed 120 cuts in the film and Khalra’s family had objected to it. ‘Punjab ’95’ starring Diljit Dosanjh, Arjun Rampal and Suvinder Vicky in the lead roles was supposed to be released without any cuts outside India, but looks like a release is unlikely once again.
‘Punjab’ 95 has been battling controversies for the last 3 years, ever since it was submitted to the CBFC for certification.
Wondering why there is a delay in releasing ‘Punjab ’95’ overseas and why it is not getting approval in India?
This is because of the subject matter of this political thriller directed by Honey Trehan. It was initially titled ‘Ghalughara’ but was changed after objection from the Censor Board, following the intervention of Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee ‘Punjab ’95’ was to be released uncut abroad.
However, due to not being shared publicly, the international release of this Dosanjh starrer has been put on hold until further notice. The film’s makers and Diljit himself shared a note on social media saying, “We are sorry, and it saddens us to inform you that the film Punjab ’95 will not release on February 7 due to circumstances beyond our control ”
Even the trailer of ‘Punjab ’95’ was removed from YouTube India just a day after its release.
What is the theme of Punjab’95?
‘Punjab ’95’ is the biopic of Jaswant Singh Khalra, a prominent Sikh human rights activist who gained global attention for his research into approximately 25,000 illegal killings and cremations involving the Punjab Police. It is reported that the police also killed 2000 of their own personnel who refused to cooperate in the project.
Khalra was a bank director in Amritsar during the period of terrorism in Punjab. At the height of Punjab’s unstable period in the 90s, following Operation Blue Star, the assassination of Indira Gandhi and the anti-Sikh riots of 1984, the Punjab Police had ample power to detain suspects for any reason, mainly Suspected terrorist.
Punjab Police was reportedly accused of killing unarmed suspects in fake shootouts and burning thousands of bodies to hide the killings.
After starting to investigate the cases by collecting evidence and testimony of witnesses, Jaswant Khalra brought the entire case into the public domain. Khalra initially started searching for some of his comrades who had gone missing. During his investigation he found files of many other people who were killed and later burnt in several districts of Punjab and the list included thousands of people. The data was later validated by the National Human Rights Commission of India.
About Jaswant Singh Khalra
Jaswant Singh Khalra came from a family known for its human rights activism. His grandfather, Harnam Singh, was an activist of the Ghadar movement, a wing that led India’s freedom struggle from abroad.
Khalra’s efforts to draw global attention to the illegal activities of the Punjab Police during the rebellion led to his kidnapping by Punjab Police officers on September 6, 1996. Despite several witnesses testifying to his arrest, the Director General of Punjab Police, Kanwar Pal Singh Gill, denied ever arresting or detaining Khalra.
Khalra was later murdered and those accused of his murder were not charged for 10 years until 18 December 2005, when six Punjab Police officers were convicted. After several years of legal proceedings, in 2011 the Supreme Court rejected the appeal against the life sentence, criticizing the atrocities of the Punjab Police during the terrorism period.
Jaswant’s wife Paramjit Kaur has continued her husband’s activism and is a well-known human rights activist herself.
