HC refuses interim order to stay decision permitting Sikhs to carry kirpans on domestic flights
New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi High Court Thursday refused to pass an interim order staying the operation of the decision allowing Sikhs to carry kirpans having a blade length of up to six inches while travelling on domestic flights.
"No stay," said a bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad while seeking the stand of the Centre and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on public interest litigation (PIL) challenging the March 4, 2022 notification in this regard.
The bench asked the respondents to file their response to the petition which seeks the constitution of a committee to examine workable solutions to ensure that a kirpan permitted to be carried on the flight is appropriately designed and crafted and does not have a blade length beyond 4 cm.
The petition by lawyer Harsh Vibhore Singhal said that permitting kirpans on flights, in terms of the presently permissible dimensions, has dangerous ramifications for aviation safety and if kirpans are deemed safe only because of religion, one wonders how knitting/crochet needles, coconuts, screwdrivers, and small pen knives, etc. are deemed hazardous and prohibited .
Regardless of a contrary perception, a kirpan remains a blade used in hundreds of homicides with scores of murder cases adjudicated by even the Supreme Court. Thus, kirpans can cause havoc in the skies reducing aviation safety to a nullity, said the petition challenging the permission accorded to Sikhs to carry kirpans having a blade length of up to six inches while travelling on civilian flights in the country.
The petition contended that the regulatory permission is bad in law, mauls civil aviation safety protocols as well as international conventions, and has been promulgated without application of mind in spite of historical lessons in aviation hijackings .
The plea added that the petitioner was concerned at the whimsical and nonchalant manner in which the authorities flippantly and most complacently shrugged off historical lessons surrounding civil aviation safety and security protocols by giving a blanket regulatory approval to the unrestricted and unsupervised carriage of dangerous articles on the person of a certain section of air travellers (based upon religion) .
While the exception made for Sikh travellers limits the length of a kirpan to a maximum blade length of 15.24 cms (6") with a total length of 22.86 cms (9") including hilt length of 3", it is silent on the maximum width and thickness of the blade starting at the hilt and tapering gradually till the pointed tip. It is a matter of elementary physics that a blade with narrow width at the base is less lethal in capacity to pierce, chop, cut or slice as compared to thicker broader bases gradually tapering to the pointed tips, the plea said.
The petition said that all conflicting interests must be balanced and religious freedom under Article 25 of the Constitution and must cede precedence to laws and regulations for preserving public safety and property security.
In a notification dated March 4, 2022, the central government said that Sikh passengers shall have exceptional regulatory sanction to carry kirpans having blade length of not more than 6 inches and total length of not more than 9 inches whilst on board any civilian flight in India that is operating on all domestic routes.
The matter would be heard next on December 15.
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Karnataka Muslim Convention to be held in Bengaluru on May 16
Muslim organisations to release report on Congress govt’s three-year performance
Bengaluru: Major Muslim organisations and federations in Karnataka have decided to organise a large public convention titled ‘Karnataka Muslim Convention’ at Town Hall in Bengaluru on May 16. During the convention, a comprehensive report reviewing the three-year performance of the Congress government under the theme “What did the Congress government promise? What did it do? What next?” will be released.
According to a statement issued on Friday, no politicians will be invited to the convention. The report will be submitted to the government and all MLAs after the event.
The convention is being held at a time when the Congress government is nearing the completion of three years in office on May 20. Muslim organisations have expressed dissatisfaction, alleging that despite extending strong support to the Congress in bringing it to power, the community is being neglected.
The Convention is being organised at time when there are concerns over inadequate political representation for Muslims, alleged neglect of community demands, and the suspension of senior Muslim leaders who had worked for the party for decades.
The organisers said the convention aims to raise questions on what the Congress government has delivered so far and what further steps are expected from the government.
The decision to hold the convention was taken during a meeting held on May 6 at A J International Hotel in Shivajinagar, Bengaluru. Representatives of major Muslim organisations, associations, ulema bodies, federations, and members of the ad hoc committee of Karnataka Rajya Muslim Okkoota attended the meeting.
More than 75 representatives and delegates, including senior ulemas, jamaat leaders, lawyers, retired officials, journalists and members of the KRMO ad hoc committee, participated in the discussions.
Members of the KRMO ad hoc committee’s report preparation team and experts from different sectors presented a detailed report on the Congress government’s three-year performance. The report examined promises made to Muslims on ten major issues, the extent to which they were fulfilled, pending promises, alleged discrimination in representation, and the demands now being placed before the government.
The report covered issues such as the hijab ban, reservation cancellation, hate speech and hate crimes, budget allocation, political representation, waqf matters, the anti-cow slaughter law, anti-conversion law, scholarships and educational grants.
Participants offered suggestions and recommendations on various points, and necessary corrections to the report were accepted after detailed discussions.
The meeting also reportedly expressed strong dissatisfaction over the manner in which the Congress government has treated the Muslim community. Participants are said to have opined that if the government and the Congress party continue in the same manner, the community should keep its political options open.
It was later decided that the report would be officially released at the large public convention on May 16 under the title “Karnataka Muslim Convention – What did the Congress government promise? What did it do? What next?”
The organisers appealed to people from all districts of the state to participate in large numbers and send a strong message to the government and the Congress party through the convention.
They also decided that all organisations, jamaats and associations should work towards ensuring participation from every district in Karnataka.
The statement reiterated that no politicians would be invited to the May 16 convention and that the report on the Congress government’s three-year performance would be submitted to the Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Minister, ministers and MLAs after the event.
