After Sidhu Moosewala's controversial track 'SYL', Kanwar Grewal's song 'Rihai' removed from YouTube, Akali youth to hold tractor protest march against ban on July 15

Chandigarh, July 13

Shiromani Akali Dal’s (SAD) youth wing Youth Akali Dal has announced that it will take out a tractor march on Thursday in protest against the Centre’s ban on two Punjabi songs.

Taking to Twitter, YAD president Parambans Romana wrote: “@Akali_Dal_in views the ban on #SidhuMoosewalaSYL and #KanwarGrewalRihai as an attempt by GOI to suppress the voice and sentiment of Punjabis. In protest against and in defiance of this ⁦ban YAD will take out a tractor march playing these songs in all Distt’s on the 15th.”

⁦@Akali_Dal_⁩ views the ban on #SidhuMoosewalaSYL and #KanwarGrewalRihai as an attempt by GOI to suppress the voice and sentiment of Punjabis.
In protest against and in defiance of this ⁦ban YAD will take out a tractor march playing these songs in all Distt’s on the 15th pic.twitter.com/cat0gqJ5oi

— Parambans Singh Romana (@ParambansRomana) July 12, 2022

YouTube removed Grewal’s track ‘Rihai’ on July 8, which called for the release of Sikh Prisoners.

The video, which was reportedly uploaded on July 2, had garnered around seven lakh views.

Moosewala’s controversial song SYL was banned last month after getting 27 million views.

The Akali Dal had earlier criticised the ban on the two songs saying such bans are not in the interest of a healthy democracy.

“Led by SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal, the core committee expressed grave concern at the manner in which freedom of speech and expression were being throttled by banning songs which solely expressed the sentiments of the people. The committee noted that there was nothing objectionable in either the SYL song sung by the late Sidhu Moosewala or the Rihai song sung by Kanwar Grewal which had been banned by the Centre,” an official statement read.