DW BUREAU / CHANDIGARH

A panel of legal experts are being consulted for a law under which harsher punishment would be given for acts of "sacrilege" against religious scriptures, Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said Monday. The government is not in a hurry and will not bring such a law which will require subsequent amendments, the minister said. Asked whether the legislation will be brought in the two-day special session of the Punjab Assembly starting July 10, Cheema said, "A panel of legal experts are being consulted over framing the law. We will take the opinion of LR (legal remembrancer) and the AG (Advocate General) office." Cheema said Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann is serious about the sacrilege issue.

"The law will ensure that no person dares to indulge in sacrilege. Our work (on framing the legislation) is not finished yet. When the draft is completely ready, we will share," he said while speaking to reporters after a cabinet meeting here.

The council of ministers, led by Chief Minister Mann, held a meeting here. Asked whether the Bill is not ready yet, Cheema said, "If need be, we will extend it (session) or convene another one after 10 days. We are not in a hurry." He added that the Bill was under works. "Earlier, SAD-BJP government framed a wrong bill and then the Congress regime framed the wrong one. We will not bring a law that requires repeated amendments," he added.

The minister said there are several other Bills, including concerning goods and services tax, that will be tabled in the upcoming assembly session.

The AAP government was expected to table the law on "sacrilege" against religious scriptures in the two-day special session of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha.

On June 28, CM Mann had said that his government will bring a law for stricter punishment for sacrilege acts. He had announced the move after holding a meeting with representatives of the 'Sarb Dharam Beadbi Rokko Kanoon Morcha'. Mann had expressed concern over existing legal loopholes that allow individuals guilty of such unpardonable acts to walk free, calling it completely unwarranted and unacceptable.

The CM had highlighted that while the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) provides clear provisions regarding religious places, it remains silent on holy 'granths'.

Capital punishment could also be part of the law. It is not the first time that a law was being brought for stricter punishment for sacrilege. In 2016, the then SAD-BJP government brought in the IPC (Punjab Amendment) Bill, 2016 and CrPC (Punjab Amendment) Bill, 2016 recommending life sentence for sacrilege against Guru Granth Sahib. The Centre later returned the bill.

In 2018, the then Amarinder Singh government had passed two Bills -- the Indian Penal Code (Punjab Amendment) Bill, 2018, and the Code of Criminal Procedure (Punjab Amendment) Bill 2018, which stipulated a punishment of up to life imprisonment for injury, damage or sacrilege to Guru Granth Sahib, Bhagavad Gita, Quran and the Bible.

(editor@dailyworld.in)