The Punjab Assembly has unanimously decided to refer the Punjab Prevention of Offences against Holy Scriptures Bill, 2025 to a select committee of MLAs for wider consultation with all the stakeholders. The decision came after a marathon debate on the controversial Bill, which stretched up to three-and-a-half hours.
Punjab Vidhan Sabha Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan said the committee would seek public inputs on the Bill and submit its recommendations within six months instead of four months, as proposed by the Chief Minister earlier.
The Bill lays down stringent penalties for sacrilege-related offences, including a minimum sentence of 10 years, which can be extended to life imprisonment. It stipulates that only a police officer of DSP rank or above can investigate such cases. Offences under the proposed law will be cognizable and non-compoundable. Once it is brought into effect, this law would apply across the state, overriding other legislations.
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