Days after the Punjab Vidhan Sabha referred the controversial Punjab Prevention of Offences against Holy Scriptures Bill, 2025, to a Select Committee, the 15-member panel held its first meeting at the Vidhan Sabha secretariat today. Aam Aadmi Party MLA and Chief Khalsa Diwan president Inderbir Singh Nijjar chair the committee.
The committee, formed to deliberate on the newly passed legislation that seeks stringent punishment for acts of sacrilege, saw the participation of 13 MLAs in its first meeting. Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan also attended the deliberations.
Following the meeting, Nijjar stated, “We plan to meet every week. The next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, where we will discuss modalities to invite suggestions from the public.”
The committee’s immediate focus is to chalk out a roadmap to collect feedback from citizens, religious leaders, and heads of religious institutions regarding the provisions of the new law. The panel has been given a six-month deadline to report back with recommendations based on these consultations.
The Select Committee includes representation from multiple political parties: two MLAs from the Congress — Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa and Balwinder Singh; one from the BJP — Jangi Lal Mahajan; and one from Shiromani Akali Dal — Manpreet Singh Ayali. The ruling AAP has ten members on the committee: Ajay Gupta, Amandeep Kaur, Inderjit Kaur Mann, Baljinder Kaur, Neena Mittal, Jagdeep Kamboj, Budh Ram, Brahm Shankar Jimpa, Madan Bagga, and Mohammad Jamil-ur-Rehman.
Speaker Sandhwan had formally announced the committee’s composition on Saturday, shortly after the Bill was passed unanimously in the House on July 15.
The Bill, dubbed the “Anti-Sacrilege Bill”, mandates imprisonment ranging from a minimum of 10 years to life for anyone found guilty of sacrilege against holy scriptures. These scriptures include the Guru Granth Sahib (including Pothis and Gutka Sahib), Bhagavad Gita, Quran, and the Bible.
In addition to the prison term, the guilty will face a fine of not less than ₹5 lakh, which may extend up to ₹10 lakh. The offences under the proposed Act are classified as cognisable and non-compoundable, and will be tried exclusively by a Sessions Court. Only police officers holding the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) or above will be authorised to investigate such offences.
The Bill also includes punishment for abetment of sacrilege, prescribing imprisonment of three to five years and a fine up to ₹3 lakh for instigating or conspiring to commit such acts. These include damage, defacing, desecration, decolouring, decomposing, burning, or any form of disrespect toward the holy texts.
Once enacted, the law will extend across Punjab and come into force from the date it is notified in the Official Gazette. It will have an overriding effect on other existing laws dealing with similar offences.
The Assembly’s move to engage religious leaders and the general public signals an intent to gather broader consensus around the provisions of the law, which has already attracted mixed reactions from various quarters.