AMRITSAR: With a view of expanding
Sikh community in Canada
, the Sikh Sadbhavna Dal (SSD) has drawn the attention of Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau for an exemption of wearing helmets by Sikhs so they could adhere to their religious practices.
“We have written a letter to the Canadian Prime Minister to allow
Canadian Sikhs
to forgo helmet wearing so they could adhere to their religious practices” said chief of SSD Baldev Singh Wadala here on Monday.
Stating that a substantial population of Sikhs was employed in ports, engineering, and construction sectors in Canada, where legal obligations necessitate the use of hard hat helmets, Wadala said that despite Canadian government regulations mandating helmet usage for occupational safety, this conflicts with Sikh religious practices.
Notably, religiously, Sikhs are exempted from wearing helmet as it conflicts with their religious practice of wearing turban.
“The imposition of helmet requirements has placed Sikh workers in a challenging position, compelling them to choose between adhering to their faith and retaining their employment. The discrepancy between legal obligations and religious freedoms poses a significant concern for Sikh employees in these industries” said the chief of SSD.
In the recent past, when the Indian army mandated Sikh soldiers to wear helmets, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhaak Committee and several other Sikh bodies had opposed the decision tooth and nail. However those supporting the decision had maintained that the new hi-tech helmets were part of the complete weaponry grid of a soldier.
Wadala said that at several work places Sikhs were supposed to wear helmets over their turbans . “The decision was challenged in the court but the court dismissed the petition “ he said.
Wadala wondered that a few Sikh bodies in Canada had hailed the decision of wearing helmets by Sikhs which was unfortunate .”These gestures will prove to be fatal for the community and practicing its religion in future” he said.
He said SSD had appealed to Trudeau to take cognizance of the matter and the hurt Sikh religious feelings and exempt Sikh workers from wearing helmet.
In past, Sikh groups in UK had approached the UK government seeking exempting them from wearing helmets in workplaces and had advocated wearing of the ‘Tough Turban’ which is made of impact resistant material to protect the head from an impact.
“SSD has also sought ban on manufacturing and sale of helmets for Sikhs” said Wadala.
English (US) ·