A day after the Akal Takht directed the Punjab Government to amend the anti-sacrilege law by removing its "objectionable" provisions within a month, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann strongly defended the legislation, insisting that those guilty of sacrilege deserved the harshest punishment and asking, "Tell me what is wrong with it ?" His remarks come after 69 AAP MLAs, along with other Sikh legislators, appeared before the Akal Takht, where some AAP MLAs acknowledged they had given their consent to the Bill without reading its contents. The episode raises a larger question: If concerns have been raised by the Akal Takht and even some legislators admitted they had not examined the Bill before approving it, should the Government continue defending the law without introspection, or first address the questions surrounding its own legislative process ?
अकाल तख्त द्वारा पंजाब सरकार को एक महीने के भीतर बेअदबी विरोधी कानून की "आपत्तिजनक" धाराओं में संशोधन करने का निर्देश दिए जाने के एक दिन बाद मुख्यमंत्री भगवंत मान ने कानून का जोरदार बचाव करते हुए कहा कि बेअदबी के दोषियों को सबसे कड़ी सज़ा मिलनी चाहिए और पूछा, "बताइए, इसमें गलत क्या है ?" उनके ये बयान ऐसे समय आए हैं जब अकाल तख्त के समक्ष पेश हुए 69 आम आदमी पार्टी के विधायकों समेत अन्य सिख विधायकों में से कुछ ‘आप’ विधायकों ने स्वीकार किया कि उन्होंने विधेयक की सामग्री पढ़े बिना ही अपनी सहमति दे दी थी। ऐसे में एक बड़ा सवाल खड़ा होता है: जब अकाल तख्त ने कानून पर आपत्तियाँ जताई हैं और खुद कुछ विधायकों ने माना है कि उन्होंने विधेयक को पढ़े बिना मंजूरी दी, तो क्या सरकार को पहले अपनी विधायी प्रक्रिया पर उठे सवालों का जवाब देना चाहिए या बिना आत्ममंथन किए कानून का बचाव करते रहना चाहिए ?
The Punjab Assembly unanimously passed the Jaagat Jot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar (Amendment) Act, 2026. But during proceedings before the Akal Takht, several MLAs admitted they had voted for the Bill without even reading its contents, claiming they received the draft too late. The admission raises a disturbing question that goes far beyond one law. If elected legislators can pass one of Punjab's most sensitive and consequential Bills without reading it, what does that say about the quality of lawmaking inside the Assembly ? Is legislation now being passed on party instructions rather than legislative scrutiny ? If MLAs themselves don't read the laws they vote for, who is truly protecting the interests of the people they were elected to represent ? What does this episode reveal about Punjab's legislative culture ?
