Judge rules in favor of turban-wearing officer

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Judge rules in favor of turban-wearing officer

Complaint: NYPD didn't reasonably accommodate Sikh's faith

>From Anne Castellani

CNN

Friday, April 30, 2004 Posted: 8:34 PM EDT (0034 GMT)

 

 

 

 

NEW YORK (CNN) -- An administrative law judge has found the New York Police

Department guilty of religious discrimination by banning a Sikh police officer

from wearing a turban while on the job.

 

Jasjit Singh Jaggi, a former traffic enforcement agent with the department,

filed the complaint with the city's Commission on Human Rights in June 2002. He

said the department discriminated against him because it didn't provide "a

reasonable accommodation of his religious belief."

 

Judge Donna Merris ruled that the police department violated the New York City

Human Rights Law and Title VII of the United States Civil Rights Act of 1964.

She said the department had not proved its claim that allowing Jaggi to wear the

turban on duty "would impose an undue hardship on the department."

 

Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said the department will "most likely" challenge

the ruling.

 

"We're going to take a hard look at this decision," he said. "This is an

administrative judge. It can now go into a more formalized state court

proceedings, and we'll take a hard look at that, but I believe there is a

benefit to the public and to officers in uniformity in appearance. And I think

that's going to be kind of a governing thought, you might say, as we go

forward."

 

After the ruling Wednesday, Jaggi said he planned to return to the police

department in the "near future."

 

"I'm very much happy with the judge's decision" he said.

 

According to court documents:

 

On September 21, 2001, his first day of training, Jaggi was told neither his

turban nor his beard were permitted by the NYPD's uniform policy. After

graduating as the valedictorian of his training class in January 2002, he began

working as a traffic enforcement agent.

 

Jaggi said he felt humiliated and ashamed because "I was not doing what I'm

supposed to do according to my religion."

 

He repeatedly asked for permission to wear the turban but was rejected, and

finally filed the human rights complaint.

 

On August 26, 2002, Jaggi wore his turban to work and was told by his supervisor

he would be fired if he continued to do so. Jaggi then quit his job, and moved

his family to Killington, Vermont, where he runs a hotel.

 

Jaggi, who emigrated from India in 1988, expressed his love for the United

States after the decision.

 

"I respect it's the land of opportunity," he said. "You work hard here, and you

can be whatever. You work hard and justice prevails. I had a feeling in my heart

that one day justice would prevail."

 

Sikhs in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the British army are permitted to

wear turbans as part of their uniforms.

 

Sikhism, combining elements of Islam and Hinduism, is the fifth-largest religion

in the world. Most Sikhs live in India.

 

 

 

Guru Bandhu Khalsa