Protests across India have called for harsh punishment in the Kathua rape case.Srinagar:  As the centre approved the death penalty for rapists of children below the age of 12 after weeks of public outrage over the rape and murder of an 8-year-old in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua, the state government said today it too was going to bring a similar ordinance.

The draft ordinance will be placed before the state cabinet next week for its passage since the order passed by the union cabinet is not applicable to state of Jammu and Kashmir."We have already prepared a draft ordinance to award death penalty to child rapists.

It will be passed during next cabinet meeting," said Abdul Haque Khan, Jammu and Kashmir Law Minster.The centre today responded to the barrage of attacks over the government's inability to curb sexual crimes against girls with an executive order to introduce death penalty for child rapists, longer jail term for all rapists and set an ambitious four-month deadline to complete investigation and trial in all rape cases.

But the central law is not applicable to state of Jammu and Kashmir because of its special constitutional status.

The state has its own constitution and penal code.The opposition National Conference says they support any such ordinance to award death penalty to guilty in cases of such crimes."We support it.

The government should immediately pass this ordinance.

We have already demanded a special session of the assembly so that a bill is passed and death penalty is awarded to child rapists," said Nasir Sogami, senior National Conference leader.Eight people, including four policemen, have been arrested and charged for the rape and murder of the 8-year-old that the police say was committed to intimidate and drive the nomad community out of the area in Jammu.

Along with the rest the country, Jammu and Kashmir too saw protests and calls for tougher measures after the rape and murder of the 8-year-old in January this year.