Meghalaya state plans to introduce an anti-blasphemy law in the wake of Christian outrage against a school book picturing Jesus with lighted cigarette and bear bottle.

Ampareen Lyngdoh, Meghalaya’s education minister said the proposed law “will help the government take action against” people who publish such books, reported Reuters news agency today.

Police in state capital Shillong on Feb. 18 seized copies of the book from St. Joseph Girl’s Higher Secondary School in the city. The book–the cursive writing practice book meant for grade one–has pictures of Jesus Christ holding a cigarette in one hand and a beer bottle in the other.

The police registered a case against the book’s New Delhi-based publisher and supplier following complaints from the school in this Christian majority state.

Lyngdoh said “absence” of such a law makes officials unable “to take action against publishers who commit such offences, which leads to public outrage.”

Christians across the state have condemned the incident and demanded the government pass a law to monitor all school books for offensive content before they are circulated.

The Shillong unit of Indian Catholic Youth Movement in said the “publication of the picture has deeply hurt our religious sentiments.”

It in a statement said the publisher has “violated the provisions of Constitution of India.”

Source: Meghalaya plans anti-blasphemy law (Cathnewsindia.com)

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