Chandigarh, July 6
BJP National General Secretary Tarun Chugh on Sunday demanded that Hindu temples and idols should also be included in the proposed Sacrilege Bill, for which a special Punjab Assembly session has been called on July 10 and 11.
Chugh regretted that the Bill is being brought by the Bhagwant Mann government even after more than three years of its promise made in the election manifesto. “But better late than never,†he said and demanded that the Bill must also include “Pran Pratishthit†Hindu temples in Punjab. Chugh said that lately there have been a number of incidents in which Hindu temples were targeted. The BJP, he said, holds Guru Granth Sahib in the highest esteem, so the party welcomes the Bill, but at the same time Hindu idols should also be accorded respect.
Meanwhile, Vidhan Sabha Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan has called the Legislative Assembly, which was adjourned sine die on May 5, to meet at 11 am on July 10 under the second proviso to Rule 16 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha (Punjab Legislative Assembly). A government spokesperson said the law against sacrilege would prevent a repeat of such incidents in the future. “For a long time, there has been a demand for making a law against sacrilege in Punjab. The Mann government will fulfil the demand of the people,†said the spokesperson.
The incident of sacrilege of Sri Guru Granth Sahib that caught nationwide attention took place in Behbal Kalan village of Faridkot district in 2015, and the subsequent police firing on protesters that claimed two lives was raked up by the Congress against the SAD-BJP combine government in the 2017 Assembly polls. Even in 2022 polls, in which the current state government came at the helm, the incidents continued to rock the state’s political sphere as successive governments are under fire for failing to deliver justice in the cases.
In the run-up to the last assembly polls, Justice Ranjit Singh (retd), who headed the commission into the alleged incidents of sacrilege and the subsequent police firing, placed then Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) patriarch, and then DGP Sumedh Singh Saini in the dock. He castigated the Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda, whose chief and self-styled godman Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh is currently serving a 20-year jail sentence for raping two of his disciples and a life term for a journalist's killing, for the incident of sacrilege.
— IANS
Reader Comments
This is just political drama before elections. Where was BJP when actual incidents happened? Now they want to score points. First implement the existing bill properly, then talk about expansions.
As a Sikh, I fully support protecting all religious places. But the timing seems suspicious. Why wasn't this demand raised earlier? Let's not mix politics with matters of faith.
Good move! In a secular country like India, all religions should get equal protection under law. Hindu temples in Punjab have faced attacks too. The bill should be comprehensive.
The real issue is justice for Behbal Kalan victims. 7 years and no convictions! Politicians keep using this sensitive issue for votes. First punish the guilty from 2015 incident.
Respect for all religions is important, but let's not dilute the original purpose of this bill. The sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib was a very specific trauma for Punjab. Maybe a separate bill for other religions?
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