Chandigarh, Apr 23 : Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring on Thursday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking a ban on the airing of ZEE5 docu-series on gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, ‘Lawrence of Punjab’.
Warring has been opposing the web series, claiming that it would glorify gangster culture.
In a letter to the prime minister, Warring said the series is based on the life of the dreaded and notorious gangster Lawrence Bishnoi.
“The movie/series aims to glorify someone who has been involved in so many gruesome crimes, including the brutal murder of the most popular Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala.
“We in Punjab have strong objections to this series for many reasons… Punjab is a holy land of ‘Gurus’, ‘Rishi’ and ‘Pirs’. You have yourself spent a lot of time in Punjab. You know Punjab’s history and culture as much.
“Should such a holy land with a glorious history and culture be identified with a gangster? That is what the OTT series wants to project,” he said.
He asserted that glorifying crime and the gangster culture could leave a “dangerous and disastrous” impact on the impressionable young minds.
“Instead of discouraging crime and gangster culture, which we all should aspire for, the web series will glorify it. Punjab does not need any introduction. Identifying Punjab with a criminal and a gangster like Lawrence Bishnoi is an insult to Punjab, Punjabi and Punjabiyat.
“We must nip the evil in the bud and we seek your personal intervention to ban the series from getting aired,” said the Ludhiana MP.
He urged the prime minister to issue directions to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the Information Technology to ban the release of the web series.
On Wednesday, Warring filed a public interest litigation (PIL) in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, seeking stay on the ‘Lawrence of Punjab’.
In his plea, Warring submitted that he filed the petition in the larger public interest of society, particularly keeping in view the socio-criminal environment prevailing in the state of Punjab.
Lawrence of Punjab’ will be released on ZEE5 on April 27.
According to the makers, the show “traces the journey of a criminal identity through the lens of culture, systems, and visibility” and treats Bishnoi as a case study in the ecosystem of student politics, music, ideology and media amplification.
Bishnoi, 33, currently lodged in a Gujarat jail, has been facing multiple criminal cases.
He is one of the main accused in the murder of singer Sidhu Moosewala.
Bishnoi, a product of a gangster-terror network nexus, has also been named by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in several high-profile cases.
