Kanwar Grewal's homes raided by IT officials: Who is Punjabi singer who wrote protest anthems for farmers?

On Tuesday, the homes and offices of Punjabi singers Kanwar Grewal and Ranjit Bawa were raided by Income Tax Department officials and CRPF personnel.

IT officials from Ludhiana said the operation was conducted after they received several complaints against Grewal and Bawa with regard to alleged tax evasion.

The raids were conducted at Grewal’s homes in Mohali’s Taj Towers and Bathinda, while Bawa’s residential and office properties in Chandigarh, Mohali and Batala were searched, according to The Tribune.

The raids also come in the backdrop of intense questioning of several Punjabi singers by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on the ‘influence’ of gangsters in the Punjabi music industry.

But who is Grewal? Let’s take a closer look

About Kanwar Grewal

Grewal is an award-winning Sufi singer and lyricist.

Grewal was born into a Jatt Sikh farmer family in Bathinda’s Mehma Sawai village.

He graduated from Kotkapura’s SBC College and did his post-graduation at Patiala’s Punjabi University.

He was inclined towards music since Class VI music and was popular in school.

His music highlights his Punjab heritage.

The 38-year-old rose to fame with his very first album Akhan in 2013, which was followed by Jogi Nath in 2016.

He made his film debut as a singer with the hit song Faqeera from the 2016 movie Firdaas.

Grewal was honoured by Canada’s British Columbia in 2018 for his contribution to the promotion of the Punjabi language.

He also bagged the jury choice award for the best Punjabi singer in the music industry in the same year and the best Sufi singer award in 2020, reported News18.

Grewal’s participation in farmers’ agitation

The Sufi singer actively participated in farmers’ agitation in the National Capital last year and often wrote songs during demonstrations. Several videos also surfaced on social media where he was seen preparing langar for farmers and interacting with them.

During the protests, he penned Ailaan, which spoke about the farmer’s protest against the farm laws in Punjab and Delhi.

The song, which was released on 10 October 2020, was pulled down from YouTube by order of the Union government. By then the song had already garnered over six million views in just two days.

According to Indian Express, Grewal released over ten protest songs from August 2020 to February 2021.

His song Rihai, which talks about releasing Sikh prisoners who had been languishing in jails for several years, was also banned from YouTube by the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) slammed the Centre for pulling down the song — which was later reinstated on YouTube.

According to The Tribune, SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal said, ”Democracies which do not respect freedom of speech and expression cannot remain sustainable for long.”

About Ranjit Bawa

Ranjit Bawa is a Punjabi singer and actor born in Punjab’s Gurdaspur.

He graduated from Batala’s Guru Nanak College and pursued post-graduation from Amritsar’s Khalsa College.

He also has a Master’s Degree in music from Guru Nanak Dev University.

The singer-actor rose to fame with his single Jatt Di Akal in 2013.

He made his acting debut with the 2017 Punjabi film Toofan Singh, a film partially based on activist Shaheed Bhai Jugraj Singh Toofan’s life, who raised his voice for Punjabi society during the 80s, according to IMDb.

Ranjit is known for performing songs with socially-conscious themes, as per News18.

In 2020, he caused a stir with a song he wrote against caste prejudice and the plight of the impoverished. The song has been called “anti-Hindu” by his critics.

With inputs from agencies

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