Why Christians in Assam are up in arms against Bill preventing 'magical healing'

Assam assembly

The Christians in Assam are protesting against a bill passed recently by the state government.

The state government has passed The Assam Healing (Prevention of Evil) Practices Bill, 2024, criminalising "non-scientific magical healing practices used with malicious intent to exploit innocent individuals".

With Christian institutions reporting of alleged  harassment by various outfits –a legislation passed by voice vote in the Assam Assembly has further left the community feeling increasingly targeted.

The Assam Tribal Christian Coordination Committee (ATCCC), meanwhile, has called upon the Assam government to reconsider the Bill.

Christian organisations have criticised Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for equating healing with proselytisation.

Scrutinizing the bill

The bill recently passed by the Assam assembly wants to eradicate non-scientific healing practices with ulterior motives.

As per the Bill, no person shall take any part in healing practices and magical healing propagation for treatment of any diseases, any disorder or any condition relating to the health of a person (relating to human body) directly or indirectly giving a false impression of treatment to cure diseases, pain or trouble to the human health.

The Bill also includes an indemnity clause, stating that “no suit, prosecution or other legal proceeding shall lie against any person for anything which is, in good faith done or intended to be done under this Act.”

Also Read: How Himanta Biswa Sarma is preparing pitch for Uniform Civil Code in Assam

The punitive provisions of the bill

According to Section 3 of the bill, the government is empowered to ban evil or magical healing practices for treating certain diseases and health disorders. Section 4 of the bill empowers the government to prohibit misleading advertisements for such practices.

According to Section 5 of the bill, the government can impose punishment for any act or promotion of such practices.

The punishment can range from imprisonment for one year, extendable up to three years, or a fine of Rs 50,000, or both, says Section 6. For repeated offences, the convicted could face up to five years in jail or a fine of Rs 1 lakh, or both.

The Bill also authorises a police officer ranked sub-inspector and above to enter and inspect places within their jurisdiction where they might believe an offence under the Bill has been committed or “is likely to be committed”, and seize evidence or advertisements. It also proposes to authorise the government to appoint police officers as “vigilance officers.”

Does the bill undermine constitutional safeguards?

Various Christian outfit asserted that Article 25 of the Constitution guarantees the people of their right to practice religion. The groups also reasoned religious leaders use the power of prayer to invoke divine healing. Labelling it as magical healing oversimplifies the profound spiritual dimensions of faith and life.

As per Article 25 of the Indian Constitution, a person has the right to practice one's chosen religion. Any accusation against Christians, therefore, undermines this constitutional protection, reiterated the minority organisations.

How is the Opposition viewing the Bill?

Congress leader Debabrata Saikia while speaking in the Assembly said: “We feel this Bill is another attempt to bring uniform civil code in Assam. There is no clear definition of evil practices and each community in Assam has some ways or curing illnesses and healing them based on traditional herbs/medicines and practices.”