Chandigarh (Punjab) [India], July 14 : Bharatiya Janata Party leader and the Party's Punjab in charge, Ashwani Kumar Sharma commented on the Anti-sacrilege bill, introduced today in Punjab Assembly and called it a move to 'divert attention from major issues" and asked the 'definition' of sacrilege in the bill.
Ashwani Kumar Sharma raised question as why it was not brought up in the last three years and said to ANI, "Is the government doing this, do divert attention from the major issues?... This is such a sensitive issue and why has the government not brought this up in three years? They should have sent the bill to us earlier and there should have been a discussion on it. What would be the definition of sacrilege in the bill?..."
Meanwhile, Punjab Minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond expressed his gratitude to the Punjab Chief Minister for introducing the bill and said, "I express my gratitude to the Chief Minister of Punjab, as today the anti-sacrilege bill is being introduced in the Punjab Assembly. There have been many governments in Punjab before the Aam Aadmi Party and during their tenure, incidents of sacrilege used to happen in large numbers in Punjab... BJP and the opposition should welcome this bill."
The comments came in response of the 'Punjab Prevention of Offences Against Holy Scriptures Bill 2025' introduction by Punjab CM in the Punjab assembly.
Earlier, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann-led Punjab government on Saturday decided to introduce and pass a law against sacrilege during a special session of the state legislative assembly scheduled for July 10 and 11.
This move marks a major step toward fulfilling a long-standing demand of the people of Punjab for stricter laws to address sacrilege cases in the state. The announcement came from the state government, describing the upcoming assembly session as "historic for Punjab."
Officials confirmed that the government will present a new legislation aimed at curbing acts of sacrilege and ensuring strict punishment for those involved in hurting religious sentiments. The official added that the Mann government will fulfil the demand of the people of Punjab.