Anti-sacrilege bill sent to select committee for wider consultation

Chandigarh: The Punjab assembly on Tuesday unanimously decided to send the newly introduced Punjab Prevention of Offences Against Holy Scriptures Bill, 2025, to a select committee for detailed deliberation and public consultation.

The committee, comprising members from all political parties, has been tasked with seeking opinions from religious bodies and the public and is expected to submit its report within six months.

Chief minister Bhagwant Mann, during a four-hour-long discussion on the bill, emphasised the need for widespread consultation to ensure the legislation is effective and inclusive. “We are not in haste to pass this bill. The select committee will engage with religious organisations. Someone might contribute a valuable insight we haven’t considered,” said the CM.

Following his proposal, speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan moved a resolution to refer the bill to the select committee, which was passed unanimously. Both the CM and leader of the opposition supported the speaker’s proposal to set a six-month deadline for the committee’s report.

The bill, introduced in the assembly on Monday, aims to provide stricter punishment, including life imprisonment, for acts of sacrilege against revered religious scriptures such as the Guru Granth Sahib, Bhagavad Gita, Quran, and Bible.

Mann said that repeated incidents of sacrilege over the years — especially of Guru Granth Sahib — have deeply wounded public sentiment and caused unrest. He added that the existing laws lack stringent penalties, allowing culprits to evade justice, often by claiming mental instability.

Calling Guru Granth Sahib a “living Guru” and a beacon of peace, the CM said the bill seeks to plug all legal loopholes and deliver justice to the Sikh community and others emotionally hurt by such acts. “Every devout Sikh is deeply connected with the Shabad Guru, and these incidents have bruised the psyche of every Punjabi,” he said.

Mann criticised previous governments for failing to punish those responsible for the 2016 sacrilege incidents, alleging that some even diluted cases to protect the accused. “Those who took oath on Gutka Sahib failed to uphold its sanctity,” he added, taking aim at the past leaderships.

Guru Granth Sahib a living entity and not just a text: Rana Inder

Independent MLA from Sultanpur Lodhi Rana Inder Partap Singh on Tuesday raised concerns over the proposed Punjab Prevention of Offences Against Holy Scriptures Bill, 2025, saying that referring to the Guru Granth Sahib as a “holy scripture” fails to acknowledge its true religious and legal status as the “living Guru” of Sikhs.

The legislator voiced his concerns during the debate in the Punjab assembly after the bill was tabled for discussion the previous day.

He cited a landmark Supreme Court ruling from March 2000 in a case involving Som Nath and the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), where the court clearly recognised Guru Granth Sahib as a living entity and not just a text.

“It is my humble submission before all members of the august House that efforts are made to pass a strong law against sacrilege so that in the future, no one dares to commit such a heinous crime,” he said, stressing the need for clarity in the law.