SC orders petitioners to seek sports ministry over no helmets for Sikh sportsmen

The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the SGPC and a petitioner Jagdeep Singh Puri to make a representation to the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports for the framing of guidelines on the participation of Sikhs in sporting events including cycling without being compelled to wear a helmet. Permitting both the SGPC and Puri to represent to the Ministry, the bench of Justice S.A. Bobde, Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice Deepak Gupta said that if any such representation is made the Ministry would decide on it in one year's time.

The court refused to go into the larger issue of whether Sikhs should wear turbans or not. "We are not going into the larger issue of whether Sikhs should wear the turban or not," the court said, narrowing down its contours and adding that that can be adjudicated by a civil court after examining the evidence.

Senior counsel Rupinder Singh Suri, who appeared for petitioner Jagdeep Singh Puri, said that the court has asked the petitioner to make representation to the Ministry on the framing of guidelines and the same will be decided in a year's time. The court order came on a petition by Puri who was not allowed to participate in a cycling event organised by a private organisation as he refused to wear a helmet.

(With inputs from agencies.)