Tag: kirpan

Kirpan At US Varsity

Sikh Student Detained For Wearing Kirpan At US Varsity

By LokMarg

A Sikh student at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte was allegedly detained on the campus for wearing Kirpan, one of the integral parts of five Sikh Kakars, Bharatiya Janata Party leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa claimed, sharing a video of the incident.

The BJP leader shared a video in which it was shown that the US police tried to take the Kirpan from the Sikh youth and later detained him when he resisted.
“Despite numerous global campaigns to create awareness about Sikh Kakaars, it’s disheartening to see the Campus Police at the University of North Carolina detain a Sikh youth for his Kirpan at US Varsity.” I condemn the discriminatory attitude of university authorities towards Sikh students,” Sirsa tweeted.

He condemned the incident and demanded an apology from the Campus police and University Administration that detained the youth.

“We demand an apology from Campus Police and University Admin at @unccharlotte for detaining a Sikh youth for his Kirpan, a quintessential part of Sikh Kakars. “We are in constant touch with @IndianEmbassyUS and @MEAIndia to ensure the Amritdhari student is released with due respect,” Sirsa, a former legislator, said in a tweet.

“I must appreciate the Sikh student who explained the significance of Kirpan with such faith. We demand an apology from the @unccharlotte admin for this racial attitude. I also urge @DrSJaishankar Ji to address the issue of discrimination faced by Sikh students at the global level, “he added.

The video was initially shared by the student, who posted it on Twitter saying that the police handcuffed him for resisting letting the officer take his Kirpan out of the miyaan.

“I wasn’t going to post this, but I don’t think I will receive any support from @unccharlotte. I was told someone called 911 and reported me, and I got cuffed for “resisting” because I refused to let the officer take my kirpan out of the miyaan.”

The Kirpan is an integral part of the Sikh religion and Article 25 of the Indian Constitution allows the wearing and carrying of kirpans by Sikh persons. It is one of the five Kakars.

According to the World Sikh Organization of Canada, Kirpan is an article of faith that plays a role in the Sikh religion. The kirpan is worn by initiated (Amritdhari) Sikhs, both men, and women, and is one of five articles of faith, often called the 5Ks; Kesh, Kangha, Kara, Kachhera, and Kirpan.

Sikhs wear them as a reminder of their commitment to the tenets of their faith, including justice, charity, morality, humility, and equality.

It is mandated to be worn always, it is an integral part of the Khalsa Sikh’s person, and not wearing the kirpan at any time, day or night, constitutes a grievous transgression for a Khalsa Sikh. (ANI)

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Hijab Ban In Karnataka

Don’t Compare Hijab With Sikh Turban Or Kirpan: SC Bench

By LokMarg

The Supreme Court on Thursday said that there is no comparison between Kirpan and turban of Sikhs with the hijab as a five-judge bench of the apex court held that wearing turban and kirpan is allowed for Sikhs.

The remarks came when a bench of Justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia heard various petitions challenging the Karnataka High Court judgement upholding the ban on hijab in educational institutes.

Advocate Nizamuddin Pasha, appearing for one of the petitioners, who is a student of Islam and Arabic, tried to draw similarities between the Kirpan and turban with the hijab.

Pasha said that the hijab is a part of the religious practice of Muslim girls and also asked if girls can be stopped from coming to school wearing hijab. He further argued that even Sikh students wear turbans.

Pasha stressed that cultural practices should be protected.

Justice Gupta said that comparison with Sikhs may not be proper as carrying of the kirpan is recognized by the Constitution. “So don’t compare practices,” the court remarked.

Justice Gupta said there are statutory requirements on turbans and these are all practices well established in the culture of the country.

Pasha tries to cite examples of foreign countries like France.

Justice Gupta said that we do not want to be according to France or Austria. “We are Indians and want to be in India,” the court said.

Pasha while countering the Karnataka HC judgement said that the hijab protects Muslim women.

Pasha said that the findings of Karnataka HC that the Hijab is a cultural practice are based on the assumption. He cited various religious books to support his arguments.

He also argued that it was a misreading of the footnote that the HC held that the Hijab is a “recommendation” and not “essential”.

Senior advocate Devadatt Kamat said that every religious practice is not essential but it is not that the state goes on restricting it.

During the hearing, Kamat, appearing for another petitioner apprised the court that divergent views were taken by Karnataka, Kerala and Madras High Court judgments on whether the hijab is an essential religious practice. Madras and Kerala courts have held Hijab as an essential religious practice but Karnataka HC differed, Kamat said.

“Karnataka Government Order on the prescription of uniform in educational institutes suffers from non-application of mind,” he further added. (ANI)