So Sikhs weren't allowed to wear a Kirpan on Via rail trains until a week or so ago. Where have these guys been? When I was at the Khalsa Day parade, Jack Layton spoke about Sikhs being allowed to wear Kirpans on Via Rail, and I recall wondering what the big deal was about that... anyways, now I know.
Apr 26, 2007 04:30 AM
San Grewal
STAFF REPORTER
VIA Rail has changed its policy and now allows Sikh passengers to wear kirpans on trains, following a recent human rights settlement.
"It's not only weird, it's mindblowing that they're only changing their policy now," said Mississauga lawyer Sat Gosal after hearing of the settlement.
The new policy came to light after Balpreet Singh, a 26-year-old law student at the University of Ottawa, was informed last week about the settlement by the Canadian Human Rights Commission after he filed a complaint in October, 2005.
Singh was removed from a VIA train in Ottawa, destined for Toronto, after a passenger complained he was wearing a weapon.
Since the Charter of Rights and Freedoms came into force in 1982, the Supreme Court of Canada has repeatedly ruled against policies denying Sikhs the right to wear a kirpan.
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