Chandigarh, April 12 -- The Punjab cabinet on Saturday cleared a stringent amendment to the Jaagat Jot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar Act, 2008, introducinglife imprisonment to ensure strict punishment for "beadbi" (sacrilege). The Jaagat Jot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar (Amendment) Bill, 2026, will be introduced on Monday during a special session of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha. The decision was taken in a meeting chaired by chief minister Bhagwant Mann. A spokesperson for the chief minister's office (CMO) said: "Several incidents of beadbi in the past have deeply hurt public sentiments and caused unrest. While Sections 298, 299, and 300 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, address such matters, they do not prescribe sufficiently stringent punishments to serve as a strong deterrent." The CMO added that the AAP government determined that legal measures were required to safeguard the sanctity of the holy scripture and promote communal harmony. The proposed legislation stipulates enhanced penalties, including life imprisonment, for those found guilty of committing sacrilege against Sri Guru Granth Sahib. Sacrilege against religious scriptures remains an emotive issue in Punjab and there has been a demand from various quarters for stringent punishment against such a crime. As per Punjab government data, as many as 597 cases of sacrilege were reported in the last one decade. Of the 597 cases, 480 involve sacrilege of Sikh religious scriptures and shrines, 92 involve Hindu religious places, 14 Muslim shrines and scriptures, and 11 Christian places of worship. So far, out of 597 FIRs, only 44 have ended in conviction. Reacting to the cabinet's approval, Congress MLA from Jalandhar Cantt Pargat Singh termed the proposed legislative move as "misleading" and politically motivated. He claimed that the government was merely seeking to amend the existing Jaagat Jot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar Act, 2008, while presenting it as a fresh piece of legislation. According to him, such an amendment would bring no meaningful change. The Congress leader argued that instead of revisiting the 2008 Act, the government should focus on securing passage of the 2018 amended bill, which had broader scope, covering all religious scriptures and incorporating provisions like life imprisonment under Section 295AA of the IPC. Highlighting legal hurdles, he pointed out that introducing criminal provisions into the 2008 Act would place it under the Concurrent List, making it subject to Presidential assent under Article 254 - an approval that had earlier been denied to similar legislation. Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee president Harjinder Singh Dhami said the information shared with the media regarding the bill was unclear and confusing. Dhami said on the one hand, cabinet minister Harpal Singh Cheema had described it as an entirely new bill, while on the other hand, it had been named the Jaagat Jot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar Bill 2026, raising the question whether the government intended to amend the existing 2008 Act or introduce a completely new law addressing incidents of sacrilege. This ambiguity, he said, was creating confusion among the Sikh community, further demanding that the draft of the bill be made public. In March, Dhami had demanded that the central government introduce amendments in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) to introduce stringent punishment over sacrilege cases, including capital punishment, as such cases had failed to reach a conclusive end only because of "toothless" laws. The cabinet also approved a solar street lighting programme to cover 11,500 villages with nearly 3 lakh lights. The project will be implemented on an opt-in basis for gram panchayats. The state will provide 70% of the funding, while the remaining 30% will be the gram panchayat's share. The Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA) will execute the programme in phases between June and October 2026. The initiative includes new installations and maintenance, with priority given to public spaces and Scheduled Caste residential areas. In a first for the state, the cabinet gave its concurrence to host the Men's Asian Champions Trophy 2026. An agreement has been signed between the Punjab State Sports Council and Hockey India. The estimated expenditure for the tournament is Rs.25.4 crore. The funds will be used for the event and upgrading hockey stadiums in Jalandhar and Mohali to meet international broadcasting and playingstandards....