India’s Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) leader Abhijeet Dipke has publicly apologised to Punjabi singer-actor Diljit Dosanjh after mocking him for staying quiet during student protests in Delhi after a NEET paper leak.
The apology came after Dosanjh addressed the row at his concert at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Delhi on Friday evening. He did not name Dipke or the party. He told the crowd that no one should teach Punjabis how to fight, while also objecting to the mockery of his film Satluj on stage.
“I love all of you because I am an artist, bro. I am being quiet, so let me stay quiet. I support all of you. But don’t teach Punjabis how to fight,” Dosanjh said.
He then defended the film. “The film you are making fun of on stage, Jaswant Singh Khalra’s film,” he said. “We fought for that film for a long time. I love all of you. If someone hates us, it’s okay. But I love all of you.”
Dipke replied on Instagram and called Dosanjh his “younger brother”.
“Paaji, back in June, when we were protesting, I was a little hurt by your comment,” he wrote. “Not because I had anything against you personally, but because I have always seen you as someone who speaks up for the cause, just like you said yourself.”
Dipke said his admiration for the singer has not changed. “I still listen to your music,” he wrote. He said he attended Dosanjh’s concert in Chicago this May, just before he returned to India. He praised the singer’s courage and authenticity, and the way he has taken India to the global stage while staying true to his roots.
“One disagreement or misunderstanding doesn’t change the respect and admiration I have for you,” Dipke wrote. He ended the post with the words “Baaki paaji, Chhota bhai samjh ke mitti pao [Anyway, brother, consider me your younger brother and let it go].”
The dispute began in June. Dosanjh distanced himself from the protests at Jantar Mantar over alleged exam irregularities and the NEET paper leak. A fan asked him during an Instagram Live whether he would join. “Keep me away from all this. Bro, I’m an artist. I’m no politician, I don’t know what you think I am,” he said.
He then quoted a line from Guru Granth Sahib: “Nanak dukhiya sab sansar, so sukhiya jis naam aadhaara [O Nanak, the whole world suffers; only those who rest on the Naam, the Name of God, are at peace].” He added, “Look, everything in this world can never be right. So, those who are protesting, congratulations to them, and for whom the protest is happening, congratulations to them also, as I don’t know anything.”
Many people criticised the answer and compared it with his public support for farmers during the 2020 agitation against the now-repealed farm laws.
Dipke accused him of hypocrisy for starring in politically charged films such as Satluj while staying out of the student protests.
Satluj tells the story of human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, who drew attention to illegal killings and secret cremations in Punjab in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The film took nearly three years to reach release after the Central Board of Film Certification refused to certify it. ZEE5 briefly streamed it, however, the Indian government removed it from OTT within two days.
