MOSCOW, July 23: Russian President Boris Yeltsin has vetoed the controversial religion bill on freedom of conscience and religious association, passed overwhelmingly by both Houses of Russian Parliament two weeks ago.

``It was a difficult decision,'' Russian news agency Interfax quoted Yeltsin as saying.

``But many of the features of the draft infringe on the constitutional rights and freedom of the people and citizens, establish inequality of different confessions and contradict international obligations accepted by Russia,'' said the President, who is holidaying near Samara on the Volga.

The move not only provoked the anger of the Russian Orthodox Church, whose influence the Russian president had used for his political ends, but also intensified the ongoing stand off between him and the parliament.

The bill was heavily promoted by the Russian Orthodox Church which has campaigned for the law in the past few years to protect the ``Russian soul'' from the depredations of Western and Eastern non-traditional religious groups mushrooming across Russia after the collapse of the totalitarian Communist regime in 1991. Alexy II, the patriarch of the powerful Orthodox Church, said in an interview to independent television NTV last week that both foreign sects and missionaries view Russia as an ``open field'', complaining the Church's flock was being ``stolen'' by religious groups such as the Hare Krishna Movement, Mormons and US Protestant groups.The bill gave strong advantages only to four major religions - the Russian Orthodox Church, Judaism, Islam and Buddhism, restricting the activities of hundreds of Russian and foreign non-traditional religious groups. It also listed the Russian Orthodox Church as an ``inalienable part'' of Russia.

All other faiths were prohibited unless they could prove that they have existed in Russia for the last 15 years, although under the Soviet regime religious freedom was heavily limited. The bill thus threatened the property and bank accounts amassed in Russia since 1990 by non-traditional religious groups.

Representatives of the non-traditional religious groups and human rights organisations had attacked the bill, saying the Orthodox Church wanted to ban all other religious groups under the cover of protecting Russians from extremist cults. Last week, the US Senate had threatened to cut off $ 200 million aid to Russia, if Yeltsin signed the bill into law. Pope John Paul II also wrote a letter, urging Russian President not to sign it.

Representatives of the different non-traditional groups in Moscow, expressed relief at the step taken by the President.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.