A Sikh Army officer filed a lawsuit against the Pentagon on Monday for the right to wear a turban and beard while on active duty.
Army Capt. Simratpal Singh, a West Point graduate and Bronze Star recipient, received a temporary accommodation late last year that allowed him to report to Fort Belvoir, Va., with his beard and turban, but is now facing helmet and gas mask testing beyond what is required of other soldiers, according to a complaint.
“Captain Singh is a decorated war hero. The Army should be trying to get more soldiers like him, not banning them from serving or punishing them for their beliefs,” said Eric Baxter, senior counsel at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, which represents Singh.
The suit says Singh’s beard and turban meet the Army’s grooming requirements, since the turban is a neutral color and fits under required headgear and his beard would be neat and tied under his chin even if it couldn’t be trimmed.
The temporary accommodation expires at the end of March.
“I am proud to fight for my country, which includes fighting to protect others’ religious beliefs,” Singh said in a statement late last year. “I simply ask that I be able to continue serving without being forced to give up a core part of my own faith — of who I am.”
A press release from the group representing Singh also says that the Army has granted almost 50,000 permanent exemptions to its rules on beards for medical reasons.
Singh has served in the Army for nine years, during which time he completed Ranger School and received a Master’s degree. He received the Bronze Star for service clearing improvised explosive devices in Afghanistan, according to a release from the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty.
“As a matter of long-standing policy, we do not comment on pending litigation. However, the Army is preparing a response to the lawsuit that was filed this morning,” said Lt. Col. Jennifer Johnson, Army spokeswoman.
Joe Kasper, chief of staff for Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., said the services have “backed themselves into a corner” by seeking exemptions and exclusions in recent years.
“If they’re giving exceptions for beards, as they have, then why not here? And if accommodations have been made once before, then why not again?” Kasper told the Washington Examiner. “There might very well be a good reason why the Army is taking its position, but it gets very difficult to understand that position or even respect it when standards have become so inconsistent and arbitrary.”
