“You don’t need to prove your patriotism because you are a proud son of Punjab and India,” Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal posted on microblogging platform X on Friday, 22 September, coming out in support of Canadian singer Shubh.
The India tour of popular Canada-based Punjabi singer Shubhneet Singh, who goes by the stage name Shubh, was cancelled on Wednesday amid uproar over sharing a purportedly distorted map of India earlier this year.
In her post on X (formerly Twitter), the former Union Cabinet minister and her party appealed to fellow countrymen “not to fall prey to conspiracies to label Shubh and others who speak for Punjab as anti-nationals.”
Meanwhile, Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring also came out in support of the 26-year-old singer on Friday. In his post on X, he wrote that he “opposes the labelling of our youngsters like Shubh who speak for Punjab as anti-nationals.”
“This propaganda being pushed by certain forces against Punjabis to undermine us is highly condemnable,” Warring wrote.
But Why Was Shubh’s India Tour Cancelled?
The issue came to light on 19 September when popular electronic brand boAT withdrew its sponsorship from Shubh’s upcoming India Tour, news channel NDTV reported.
A day later, ticketing platform BookMyShow posted on Twitter that “Singer Shubhneet Singh’s Still Rollin Tour for India stands cancelled” and said that it had initiated a complete refund to all consumers who had purchased tickets for the show.
The singer, who rose to fame after songs like Cheques, We Rollin and Elevated, faced backlash for a story he had shared from his Instagram handle in March 2023.
The Instagram story showed a distorted map of India, wherein the state of Jammu and Kashmir, and parts of Northeast India were covered with a shadow and "Pray for Punjab" was written alongside it.
The Instagram story showed a distorted map of India, wherein the state of Jammu and Kashmir, and parts of Northeast India were covered with a shadow and "Pray for Punjab" was written alongside it.
(Image: Twitter)
A screenshot of the singer’s old Instagram story had resurfaced online in the aftermath of diplomatic relations between India and Canada going sour over Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's comments linking “agents of the Indian government” with the assassination of Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) chief Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
'India My Country Too': Shubh
Days after the India tour was cancelled, Shubh had taken to social media to say that he was "extremely disheartened."
"India is MY country too. I was born here. It is the land of my gurus and my ancestors, who didn't even blink an eye to make sacrifices for the freedom of this land, for its glory, and for the family. And Punjab is my soul, Punjab is in my blood. Whatever I am today, I am because of being a Punjabi," he wrote.
Shubh further explained that his intention was only to offer prayers for Punjab, which was facing internet shutdowns at the time. He affirmed that he did not have any intention of offending anybody or hurting their feelings.
Meanwhile, Indian-Canadian singer AP Dhillon took to social media and expressed his disappointment in through a post where he said:
"As an artist it has become almost impossible to stay focused on your craft and do what you love. I try to be mindful of everyone's sentiments but it has gotten to a point where we have to second and triple guess our every move due to the fear of unintentionally fuelling even more division (sic)."
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)