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Chandigarh, March 31:
“The Punjab Government under the visionary guidance of the Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh is engaged in all seriousness to eradicate the menace of vulgarity from Punjabi songs and is taking this task as an article of faith.”
Disclosing this here today at Punjab Bhawan on the occasion of a meeting with the renowned intellectuals, litterateurs, artists and thinkers of Punjab, the Cultural Affairs and Tourism Minister, Punjab, Mr. Navjot Singh Sidhu announced that ‘Punjab Culture Commission’ would be formed amid the escalating concerns about rising vulgarity in the Punjabi music scenario and would tackle the menace of vulgarity by working zealously towards its complete eradication. During the course of the meeting Mr. Sidhu further said that this commission would be authorized by the Punjab Government and would make recommendations to take stringent action as per the provisions enshrined in the law against those singers or artists polluting the cultural scene of the state through vulgar, double meaning or violent inciting songs. He further elaborated that if needed the commission would also be empowered to issue show cause notices those singers singing vulgar songs or those glorifying violence, then call them for counseling and still if they don’t desist then as a last resort the option of getting an F.I.R. registered against the singer would also be open to the commission. He further said that the Section 290, Section 294 of the IPC and the Section 67 and 67 A of the Information Technology Act, 2000 have relevant provisions to take action in this regard.
The minister also reiterated that the state government headed by the Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh is not fighting elections for the sake of contesting the next elections but is concerned and thinking about saving the next generation of Punjab from the menace of vulgarity and the present measures are being formulated so as to make sure that the common public is able to watch and listen to healthy songs with family members.
The Patron in Chief of the Commission would be the Chief Minister while Mr. Navjot Singh Sidhu would be the Patron. The responsibility of recommending the other members of the commission was entrusted to the Chairman Punjab Kala Parishad Padam Shri Dr. Surjit Patar who would be the Chairman of the commission. Divulging more, Mr. Sidhu revealed that this commission would submit its report within 2 weeks which would be taken up with the Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh.
On the occasion, Dr. Surjit Patar while outlining the initiatives undertaken by the Punjab Kala Parishad to tackle vulgarity and popularize Punjabi culture said that the parishad is making painstaking efforts at district, tehsil, and village level to spread awareness with regard to the Punjabi culture, history and great heritage down to the farthest corner of the state.
The meeting also saw various experts airing their views regarding classification of the songs, promoting those singers devoted to Punjabi culture but hailing from poor economic background, encouraging those writing good lyrics without even a tinge of vulgarity.
On the occasion, eminent personality from Punjabi music scene Mr. Jarnail Ghuman, Secretary General Punjab Kala Parishad Dr. Lakhwinder Singh Johal, President Punjab Sangeet Natak Akademi Mr. Kewal Dhaliwal, Co-ordinator of Cultural Parliament Mr. Ninder Ghugianvi, Noted singer Pammi Bai, Mr. Pandit Rao Dharenawar, singer Sukhi Brar, Head Punjabi Department Panjab University Chandigarh Dr. Yograj, Professor of Punjabi at Guru Nanak Dev University Amritsar Dr. Dariya, Professor of Punjabi at Punjabi University Patiala Dr. Rajinder Pal Singh, Justice Khushdil, and Charanjit Kaur Barnala also presented their views in a forthright manner.
