NEW DELHI: Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann will hold a meeting of the seven-member coordination committee constituted to examine the amended anti-sacrilege law, at his residence here on Sunday.At the meeting to be held at 1 pm, the committee will deliberate on provisions of the Jaagat Jot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar (Amendment) Act, 2026 and matters related to its implementation, with an aim to uphold the highest standards of ‘satkar’ (reverence) for the Sikh Holy Book Guru Granth Sahib, according to an official statement issued on Saturday.All members of the coordination committee will attend the meeting.The seven-member panel comprises former Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh, Sant Giani Harnaam Singh Khalsa, Sant Baba Sewa Singh, former Justices Jaswinder Singh and Gurbir Singh, former IPS officer Jatinder Singh Aulakh and Advocate Preet Inder Paul Singh.
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The amendment bill was unanimously passed by the Punjab Assembly on April 13. It includes provisions for stricter punishment, including life imprisonment and fines from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 25 lakh, for any act of sacrilege against the Guru Granth Sahib.However, the Akal Takht has raised several objections to the law, especially on the definition of “custodian” of the religious text and on assigning unique numbers to the holy “Birs”.On June 29, Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Kuldip Singh Gargajj directed the state government to address objections concerning the anti-sacrilege law within a month.Gargajj on July 30 rejected the Punjab government’s response regarding the anti-sacrilege law as “unsatisfactory” and announced a five-member committee to engage with the AAP dispensation on the issue.