The Punjab Cabinet has approved the sacrilege bill. Following this crucial decision, the bill is likely to be presented in the Punjab Legislative Assembly today. The Punjab government aims to ensure strict action against incidents that hurt religious sentiments through this bill.
Chandigarh: A significant step has been taken in Punjab towards enacting a strict law to prevent incidents of sacrilege of religious texts and sites. The Punjab Cabinet has approved the Beadbi Bill 2025 (Punjab Sacrilege Bill 2025). This bill will now be presented in a special session of the Punjab Legislative Assembly today. Under this law, those who commit sacrilege against religious texts, religious sites, or symbols will be sentenced to life imprisonment.
This issue has been highly sensitive in Punjab for a long time, and there has been a constant demand for stringent punishment from all sections of society, especially Sikh organizations. Now, through this law, the government wants to send a message that any kind of tampering with religious sentiments in the state will not be tolerated at all.
Key Points Related to the Sacrilege Law
- Those who commit sacrilege against religious texts, religious sites, or any sacred object will be sentenced to life imprisonment.
- Convicts will not be eligible for parole.
- Special courts will be constituted to hear these cases.
- The police and administration will have the authority to take swift action in these cases.
Bill to be Presented in Special Session | Punjab Assembly Special Session 2025
The special session of the Punjab Legislative Assembly has entered its third day. The government had convened this special session to bring in the law against sacrilege, which has been extended by two more days. The proceedings of the assembly will begin at 2 pm on Monday, during which this bill will be presented, along with discussions on other important bills. These bills may also get approval:
- Punjab State Development Tax Amendment Bill 2025
- Punjab Appropriation Act Repeal Bill 2025
Additionally, MLA Rana Inder Pratap Singh may also bring a calling attention motion regarding the threat of floods in the low-lying areas. Along with this, the Punjab government may also present the annual report of the Punjab State Seed Corporation Limited from 2017-2022 and the order of the necessary finance department under Section 63 of the Punjab Public Procurement Transparency Act, 2019 in the House.
Government to Seek Opinions of All Religions
Before enacting this law, the Punjab government wants to take the opinions of all religious organizations and responsible sections of society. Consideration is being given to forming a committee for this, so that this law does not appear biased to any community and the protection of religious sentiments of all religions can be ensured. Representatives of Sikh, Hindu, Muslim, Christian, and other religions can be included in this committee.
In the past years, several major controversies related to sacrilege of religious texts have come to light in Punjab, which have caused serious damage to social harmony and law and order in the state. For this reason, there has been repeated demand from religious organizations and the general public to enact a strict law.
