Indian Embassy objects to New York State Police barring Sikh trooper from growing beard

New York State trooper Charanjot Tiwana had sought permission to grow a beard for his wedding in March last year

 

New York: The Indian Embassy in Washington has taken up the issue of a Sikh New York State Trooper being barred from growing a beard with senior levels of the administration, as lawmakers voiced concern over the incident and termed it as “religious discrimination”.

The trooper Charanjot Tiwana was denied permission to grow a beard for his wedding in March last year on the grounds that it would pose a safety risk if required to wear a gas mask.

Indian officials here took up the issue with the office of the New York State Governor, and India’s Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu, has taken up the matter with senior levels of the Biden administration. The New York State Police and the Governor’s office are also working on it, officials here said.

Assemblyman David Weprin, representing Queens in the New York State Assembly, termed the denial of Tiwana’s request to grow his beard “a concerning incident of religious discrimination” in the New York State Police.

In a post on the social media platform X, Weprin said that he had sponsored the Religious Garb Law, signed into law in 2019, “so no one will have to choose between practising their religion and doing their job”.

Calling for immediate action by the New York State Police to accommodate Tiwana in accordance with state law, Weprin said, “Quite frankly, I am appalled by these discriminatory practices and clear violation of state law.”

Meanwhile a New York State Police spokesperson said: “We have recently updated our guidelines with respect to facial hair… The New York State Police Uniform and Equipment Committee is currently working on a policy for the design and issuance of turbans.”

The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee chief Harjinder Singh Dhami had written to Sandhu and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar  iin this connecton”to raise a strong objection to discriminatory policy” of the NY State Police “of forcing Sikh troopers to cut hair and protect the rights of Sikh community”.

In 2016, the New York City Police Department, the country’s largest police force, announced it would allow Sikh officers to wear beards and turbans while in uniform.

*******************************************************

Readers

These are extraordinary times. All of us have to rely on high-impact, trustworthy journalism. And this is especially true of the Indian Diaspora. Members of the Indian community overseas cannot be fed with inaccurate news.

Pravasi Samwad is a venture that has no shareholders. It is the result of an impassioned initiative of a handful of Indian journalists spread around the world.  We have taken the small step forward with the pledge to provide news with accuracy, free from political and commercial influence. Our aim is to keep you, our readers, informed about developments at ‘home’ and across the world that affect you.

Please help us to keep our journalism independent and free.

In these difficult times, to run a news website requires finances. While every contribution, big or small, will makes a difference, we request our readers to put us in touch with advertisers worldwide. It will be a great help.

For more information: pravasisamwad00@gmail.com

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here