Chandigarh, April 14 -- The legal experts are divided over the Jaagat Jot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar (Amendment) Bill- 2026 that was passed by voice vote during the one-day special session of the assembly.

The bill tabled by chief minister Bhagwant Mann, with an aim to provide a stringent legal deterrent against acts of sacrilege, proposes stricter penalties, including life term, along with fines up to Rs.25 lakh.

This is not the first legislative attempt by successive governments in Punjab to address the sensitive issue of beadbi (sacrilege).

Sacrilege has remained a highly emotive issue in the state, particularly after the 2015 incidents in Faridkot involving the Guru Granth Sahib and the subsequent death of two protesters in polic...