According to the law, any person who commits sacrilege shall get a minimum of seven years' imprisonment, extendable to up to 20 years, along with a fine of Rs 2 lakh to Rs 10 lakh. (File Photo)Punjab Police has registered the first case under the new anti-sacrilege law after torn pages of a religious scripture were found in a slum area in Malout area of Sri Muktsar Sahib district.The FIR against unknown person was registered Thursday night following a compliant that torn pages of ‘Sukhmani Sahib Gutka’ were found in Malout’s Kuchian Mohalla, an area where around 40–50 households are engaged in scrap-related work, SSP Abhimanyu Rana said.According to information, the FIR was lodged on the complaint of Jangir Singh, a resident of Baba Jiwan Singh Nagar. In his complaint, Jangir Singh said that on April 30, a neighbour, Beeru, informed him that pages of a Gutka Sahib were lying on a street in Kuchian Mohalla. He said that upon receiving the information, he, along with Beeru, went to the spot and made a video. Jangir Singh said he collected around 40–50 pages in accordance with Rehat Maryada and handed them over to a gurdwara, where the pages were respectfully placed in a Rumala Sahib.The police were subsequently informed about the incident, following which an FIR was registered under Section 299 (criminalises deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage the religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or beliefs) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Section 5 of the Jaagat Jot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar (Amendment) Act, 2026.SSP Abhimanyu Rana said, “Investigation is going on. We are analysing CCTV footage and questioning the locals. We are working on certain actionable leads”.The Punjab government last month notified the the Jaagat Jot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar (Amendment) Act, 2026, which proposes stricter punishment, including life imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs 25 lakh, for any act of sacrilege against the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh holy book.The AAP government on April 13 had convened a special session of the Vidhan Sabha to amend the Jaagat Jot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar Act, 2008, to deter incidents of ‘beadbi’ (sacrilege) and uphold the sanctity of the Guru Granth Sahib.Story continues below this adAccording to the law, any person who commits sacrilege shall get a minimum of seven years’ imprisonment, extendable to up to 20 years, along with a fine of Rs 2 lakh to Rs 10 lakh.Any person who, in a criminal conspiracy, commits sacrilege with the intention of disrupting peace or communal harmony shall get a minimum 10-year sentence, extendable to up to life imprisonment, along with a fine of Rs 5 lakh, which may go up to Rs 25 lakh, as per the law.Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd