The Supreme Court on Friday declined to entertain a PIL by Hindu Sena challenging the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security's decision to allow Sikh passengers to carry kirpan on domestic flights.
A bench comprising Justices S. Abdul Nazeer and J.K. Maheshwari told the petitioner organisation to move the concerned high court. "You go to the High Court. Dismissed, with liberty to approach the High Court", said the bench.
The petition was filed by an organisation named Hindu Sena challenging the exemption granted to the Sikh community by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security.
The petitioner challenged the order issued by Bureau of Civil Aviation Security on March 4, 2022 which stated that "kirpan" may be carried by only by a Sikh passenger in domestic flights provided the length of its blade does not exceed 15.24 cms (6 inches) and the total length does not exceed 22.86 cms (9 inches).
The plea said: "The liberty granted to the Sikh passengers/ employees/ stakeholders vide the said order appears to be absolute without any consideration for the safety and security of the fellow passengers and employees as stated order does not provide any provision to ascertain that whether the person carrying kirpan in the high security areas like airport and aircraft is an actual Sikh or an imposter with intention to misuse the above liberty."
The plea contended that the freedom given to Sikh passengers is arbitrary and violation of Article 14 and Article 15 with respect to the discrimination made on the basis of religion, as any non-Sikh person is not allowed to carry any object that could be potential threat to the co-passengers.
"Amidst the slogans of "Bole-So-Nihal, the members of the Sikh community while holding placards in their hands Staging protests on the roads of Peshawar against the brutal killings of two #Sikhs near #Peshawar in #Pakistan," Ravinder Singh Robin tweeted.
"My heart and prayers go out to two Sikhs who were shot dead by local extortionists in #Peshawar on Sunday. The members of the Sikh community taking the dead bodies of Ranjit Singh & Kuljit Singh, on their shoulders. Sikhs leaders around the World condemn the cold blooded murder," Robin tweeted.
Two members of the Sikh community were killed after unidentified assailants opened fire on them near the outskirts of Peshawar, police said on Sunday, Dawn reported.
In a statement, Peshawar Capital City Police Office Ijaz Khan said that the incident occurred within the jurisdiction of the Sarband police station.
He also identified the victims as 42-year-old Suljeet Singh and 38-year-old Ranjeet Singh, adding that they owned spice shops in Batatal locality, Dawn reported.
Police reached the scene soon after receiving information about the incident and shifted the bodies to the hospital for an autopsy, Khan said, adding that officials were also collecting evidence from the scene of the crime.
"CCTV cameras from surrounding areas are also being checked," he said, adding that a search operation had been launched in the area to nab the suspects who managed to escape.
"Those involved in the incident will soon be unmasked," the officer said.
"The concerned department has not included the Sikh minority in the ongoing count. It is not only unfortunate for us, it is also a point of great concern for the community to have been missed out in the counting exercise," Radesh Sing Tony, chairman of a Sikh committee, told the Dawn on Saturday.
He complained that a sizeable number of Sikhs was living in Pakistan, but the community was not counted among the religions included in the census form.
He noted that Sikhs would be counted under the "other" religion category in the form, which would not provide an accurate picture of the Sikh population.
"This is an injustice, we are being deprived of our rights," he said.
The 500-year-old religion was founded in what was now part of Pakistan. Most Sikhs left Pakistan for India after both countries gained independence from Britain in 1947.
Around 20,000 Sikhs remain in Pakistan today, most in the restive northwest regions, which have been rocked by an Islamist insurgency for more than a decade, forcing many to leave their homes in the tribal areas on the Afghan border for the city of Peshawar.
Tony said he had written to the Chief Justice of Pakistan and the Chief Justices of the Peshawar and Sindh High Courts requesting that the community be counted as an official religion.
When contacted, a spokesperson for the census exercise, Habibullah Khan, admitted that it was a mistake on the part of the census authorities.
"Yes, a sizable population of Sikhs are living in Pakistan, but have we missed them in the census," he told Dawn.
He said the census forms had been printed in 2007 and only five religions had been included on the recommendation of a 120-member technical committee.
He conceded that the Sikh population may have been marginal in 2007, but their population had increased with the passage of time.
"Sikh Community and its issues are always close to my heart and I always admire the contribution of Sikhs in Indiana and across the US," he told a Sikh delegation in Indianapolis.
During the meeting with the Sikhs Political Action Committee (SikhsPAC) led by Gurinder Singh Khalsa, Pence said that he was fully aware of Sikh awareness issues since his days as Governor, a SikhsPAC media release said.
Main topic of discussion with the delegation was Sikh awareness and introduction of Sikh History in public history curriculum through federal department of education.
The 58-year-old leader also admired the efforts of SikhsPAC for encouraging Sikh Community for its participation in the main stream politics, the statement said.
During the meeting, Pence reaffirmed his commitment to the Sikh community and encouraged it to continue to give back in the form of serving in the military and public offices at local, state and federal levels, it said.
Early this week, Khalsa visited Washington DC and met about two dozen US Senator and Congressmen.
He also attended US Global Leadership Collision where about 500 world faith leaders, veterans and elected leaders participated to influence the American foreign aid policies.
Pence was the first siting Governor who attended Sikh Parade and bestowed highest Civil award to a Sikh in 2015.
The US state of Indiana has passed a resolution recognising Sikhs' "significant contributions" to America.
Hate-crime incidents against Sikhs have seen a spurt in in America recently.
According to the study titled 'Sikhism in the US: What Americans know and need to know', many Americans have never heard of the religion and only 11 per cent of them have a personal acquaintance or friend who is a Sikh.
The majority of Americans (60 per cent) admit to knowing nothing at all about Sikh Americans and knowledge of Sikhism is substantially lower than for other minority religious groups in the United States.
While only 40 per cent of Americans said they know at least something about Sikh Americans, 62, 76 and 86 per cent said they knew something about Hindu Americans, Muslim Americans and Jewish Americans respectively, according to the study conducted by Hart Research Associates on behalf of the National Sikh Campaign.
When shown a photo of a male Sikh wearing a turban, only 11 per cent of them recognised him as a Sikh. Far more believe that the person is Muslim (20 per cent), Hindu (13 per cent), or Middle Eastern (28 per cent), the report said.
The study commissioned by National Sikh Campaign to provide Sikhs a foundation for awareness-based initiatives that dispel the misperceptions that have driven the dramatic rise of hate-based violence against Sikhs since 9/11.
In the wake of the September 11 attacks in 2001, Sikhs have found themselves targeted by Americans who presume anyone in a turban must be a Muslim.
In August 2012, a white supremacist and US army veteran fatally shot six people and wounded four others at a Gurdwara in Oak Creek, Wisconsin before taking his own life.
The report is the most comprehensive study every conducted on the Sikh-American community.
"This landmark study will help the Sikh community by giving us the ability to educate Americans in a way that is both relatable and effective. It also allows us to see which demographics are most receptive to our messaging as well as those who we need to target the most to prevent misunderstanding," said Gurwin Singh Ahuja, co-founder of NSC.
Meanwhile, police lodged an FIR against the Senior Superintendent of Police's (SSP) security guard for firing at Sikh protesters.
Protests broke out at a number of places as Sikh protesters defied preventive restrictions imposed by administration, and pressed for their demand for arrest and punishment of those responsible for Thursday's firing incident.
A mob stopped the vehicle taking killed youth Jagjit Singh's body, after it was handed over to his family for last rites, in the Gadigarh (Satwari) area and burnt the police vehicle accompanying it and well as half a dozen other vehicles. The protesters were squatting there with the body, a police official said.
Earlier, dozens of angry Sikh protesters smashed vehicles and roadside eateries outside the Jammu railway station forcing closure of markets in the area as well in Gol Market area of Gandhi Nagar.
Protests also erupted in Digiana and Talab Tillo area where authorities had deployed riot police and paramilitary in full strength.
Indefinite curfew continued in areas of Satwari and Mirian Sahib where the army, assisting the civil administration, patrolled the roads.
Curfew was imposed Thursday evening following the violence.
Director General of Police K. Rajendra Kumar, who flew here from Srinagar, chaired a high-level security meeting.
Authorities also ordered the suspension of internet services to check the spread of rumours.
Jammu District magistrate Simranjeet Singh yesterday ordered service providers to suspend internet, both on landline and mobile networks.
He also imposed prohibitory orders banning the assembly of five or more people all over Jammu.
Yesterday all Educational institutions in Jammu, and the neighbouring districts of Samba, Kathua, Rajouri and Poonch remained closed.
Meanwhile, an FIR was registering in connection with the youth's killing in the police firing.
"An FIR has been registered in Satwari police station against a security guard of SSP-Jammu for firing at protesters in Satwari area in which a youth was killed," a senior police officer told IANS.
The Jammu and Kashmir government has named Ashkoor Wani the new deputy inspector general of Jammu-Kathua range.
Protesters, demanding action against a police sub-inspector who had removed posters of Bhindranwale on Wednesday, on Thursday snatched an AK-47 rifle from a special police officer in Digiana area.
"We have launched a manhunt to trace the culprit and recover the weapon," a police officer said.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed, Deputy Chief minister Nirmal Singh and Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti condoled the youth's death and appealed for peace in Jammu.
A key element in the resolution adopted on Thursday is the condemnation of dual loyalty that insinuates doubt about patriotism of sections of citizens that has a resonance for Indian-Americans who sometimes face that accusation for expressing support for India.
While 234 Democrats backed the resolution and one abstained, 173 Republicans voted for it and 23 against it.
The Executive Director of the Hindu American Foundation (HAF), Suhag Shukla, welcoming the resolution pointed out that "our communities have also faced suspicion and bigotry from people on the far-left end of the political spectrum with baseless accusations of dual loyalties to India".
The build-up to the resolution exposed a deep divide within the Democrats as the party leadership faced a rebellion from its Left and African-American groups, while the moderates pushed for the original version that targeted only anti-Semitism.
There is risk the divide that is also being reflected in the ideological divisions economic and social policies also may grow and undermine party unity to the advantage of Republicans.
The resolution was first proposed as a response to repeated anti-Jewish statements by a newly elected Muslim Representative of Somali descent, Ilhan Omar, who had accused supporters of Israel as having "allegiance to a foreign country" and tweeted that support for Israel was motivated by "Benjamin's Babies" - an anti-Semitic slur referring to $100 notes - which implied lawmakers were being bought.
But Speaker Nancy Pelosi proposal to condemn anti-Semitism faced opposition from the left wing of the party as well as the African-American bloc in the House, even though the initial draft did not mention Omar.
Indian-American Senator Kamala Harris, for example, said that it would draw attention to Omar and endanger her.
As a compromise to get the vocal dissenters to back the resolution, references to Muslims and African-Americans were added. The final version included other religions, Asians, immigrants, gays, lesbians and transgender people and other minorities.
But it left out Budhists, Mormons and others.
The HAF had lobbied for the inclusion of Hinduism in the resolution along with other groups.
Rajwand Singh, the senior adviser to the National Sikh Campaign, said: "We welcome the resolution as it hits home for us as we have been victims of hatred and violence because of our identity."
The opposition was because of the watering down of the resolution to deflect the prime reason for it - anti-Jewish comments from a Democrat. A Jewish Representative Lee Zeldin, for example, called the resolution resolution "spineless".
Omar and two other Muslim Representatives, Rashida Tlaib and Andre Carson, turned it around making it a victory for themselves and proclaimed: "It's the first time we have voted on a resolution condemning anti-Muslim bigotry in our nation's history."
The resolution prominently mentioned White Supremacists, but also included others saying, "whether from the political right, centre or left, bigotry, discrimination, oppression, racism and imputations of dual loyalty threaten American democracy and have no place in American political discourse".
The reasons for the sensitivity to accusations of dual loyalty and use of money power is because they were the starting point of the anti-Semitism in Europe that led to the Nazi holocaust in which six million Jews were killed.
Similar accusations have also led to anti-Semitism in the US leading to violence and discrimination against Jews.
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, about 60 per cent of the hate crimes in the US targeted Jews and showed an increase of 37 per cent from the previous year.
During World War II, Japanese Americans were accused of dual loyalty and lack of American patriotism and herded into internment camps under extremely harsh conditions.
The American Jewish people are unfairly targeted for the US support to Israel through unfair stereotyping. In reality, they are not the monolithic, powerful force behind support for Israel as many claim. Many Jews, including politicians, criticise Israel and oppose President Donald Trump's policies in support of Israel like recognising Jerusalem as its capital.
It is, in fact, the Christian fundamentalists who are the staunchest and uncritical supporters of Israel and drive US policy towards that country. Trump's Israel policies are aimed at this bloc that is the core of his base.
In the mid-term elections, 75 per cent of Christian fundamentalists voted for the Republican Party in contrast to 79 per cent of Jews who voted for the Democratic Party, according to Pew Research Centre.
Many Jews themselves oppose the Christian fundamentalists' backing for Israel because the reason for their support is that according to their interpretation of the Bible, Jesus Christ will return when Israel is reconstituted.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has decided to add a religious tourism category to the online visa system for the Sikh pilgrims, applying to visit Kartarpur, the Dawn newspaper reported.
"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has decided that two separate categories of visa applications will be entertained by the ministry; one would be for Sikh pilgrims of Indian origin living elsewhere in the world, while the other would be for Sikh pilgrims based in India," the report said.
An amendment in the policy to make room for the proposed steps will be sought by the foreign ministry from the Cabinet, it said.
However, all religious tourism visa requests for the Kartarpur pilgrimage will be processed within seven to 10 working days, the report said.
India and Pakistan on Wednesday agreed on visa-free travel by Indian pilgrims to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib using the proposed Kartarpur Corridor but stopped short of finalising an agreement on the cross-border route.
Earlier, the two sides had agreed that Pakistan will allow 5,000 Indian pilgrims to visit the gurdwara every day using the planned corridor, and the numbers could be more on special occasions.
But the two neighbours on Wednesday could not finalise the draft agreement on the corridor, with Pakistan insisting on charging a service fee from Indian pilgrims and not allowing protocol officials to accompany them.
Pakistan has suggested a fee of USD 20 per pilgrim for visiting the gurdwara. India said the amount was not an issue, but on auspicious occasions, no fee is charged for visiting any gurdwara in the world.
The proposed corridor will connect Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur with Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Gurdaspur district of Punjab, to mark the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev in November.
President of the Sikh Society of San Diego Baljeet Singh said the Sikh community's efforts have come to fruition.
"This has paved the way forward nationally not only for the Sikh community but also for other ethnicities in the United States," he said.
Describing this as a milestone, the United Sikhs said that this will be the first time the minority group will be counted and coded in the decennial US Census.
A delegation of the United Sikhs has held several meetings with the US Census in the recent past with the last one being on January 6 in San Diego.
"It's clear that a separate code is needed to ensure an accurate count of Sikhs in the United States, recognising a unique identity," said US Census Deputy Director Ron Jarmin.
"Working with United Sikhs, we understand how this change affects the national Sikh community, leading us to add this code for the 2020 Census," said Shagufta Ahmed with the Census Bureau and Office of Management Budget.
According to the United Sikhs, the current estimates of Sikhs living in the US are at 10 lakhs.
Sikhs meet the criteria for representation in the US Census as a distinct ethnic group and have a distinct unified appearance, culture, language, food and history.
The United Sikhs has advocated for the separate coding for more than two decades and filed commentary with the US Federal Register advocating for Sikhs to be added as an ethnic group, in large part, so that action can be taken to address major Sikh issues such as bullying, intimidation and hate crimes against the community.
"With the 2020 census approaching, many historically undercoded communities will be at-risk for being under-counted and under-served," said Ruben Singh, United Sikhs Census Manager.
"We look forward to collaborating with our census partners and other Sikh organisations and institutions to address the unanticipated challenges of the 2020 Census," he said.
Meanwhile, the Sikh Coalition has partnered with the Census Bureau for the 2020 census.
This is because Sikhs have traditionally been a 'hard to count' population in the United States, said Satjeet Kaur, Sikh Coalition executive director.
"Our community matters, and we want to make sure that Sikh families are appropriately counted and accurately resourced wherever they are across our country," she said.
(PTI)