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Sikh boy’s refusal to cut hair
costs him his job
 Shimla:
Discrimination on religious ground has brought the dream of
24-year-old Harshdeep Singh Anand, a local Sikh boy, to find a
lucrative job abroad to an abrupt end. He has been virtually
stranded for the past three weeks at Abu Dhabi without any money,
waiting to return home.
His joy knew no
bounds when he was selected for the post of Chief-de-Partie by the
Armed Forces Officers Club and Hotel,
Abu Dhabi,
after a walk-in interview held in
New Delhi.
However, he had no inkling of what was in store for him when he
boarded the plane on July 29 to take up the new job in the oil-rich
land. Everything seemed fine as he took up the assignment and
started performing his duties. His ordeal started when after a week
the director of operations Salah told him firmly that “if you want
to continue in the job, you have to cut your hair and become
clean-shaven.” He expressed his inability to do so and tried to
explain to him that it was against his religion to cut hair. Salah
did not relent and asked him to resign from the job forthwith.
Harshdeep drew
his attention to the fact that no such condition had been mentioned
in his appointment letter and it was known that he was a Sikh with
long hair as he was selected for the job after an interview. He was
a graduate in hotel management and hospitality on the basis of which
he was selected. His plea did not cut ice with Salah who insisted
that he should resign.
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Days after he assumed duty, he was asked to become cleanshaven.
When he refused, he was sacked. Will the SGPC, DSGMC take the
initiative and fight for him? |
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However, he
refused to quit as he was not at fault and had no reason to do so.
He flatly told Salah that he would have to terminate his services if
he did not want him; he would not oblige him by resigning. Salah
lost no time in sacking him. He was asked not to enter the hotel.
His father
Paramjit Singh had been running from pillar to post to get justice
for his son. He has sent representations to the Indian High
Commissioner at Abu Dhabi, the National Human Rights Commission and
other organisations. He has also taken up the matter with Sikh
religious bodies including the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak
Committee, Amritsar, and the Delhi Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee and
urged them to take up the matter at the highest level as other Sikhs
also faced the same problem.
Meanwhile, the
executive committee of the local Sri Guru Singh Sabha has passed a
resolution condemning the action of the Armed Forces Officers Club
in sacking Harshdeep and urged the Government of India to ensure
that employment conditions which led to discrimination against Sikhs
were scrapped. The State Sikh Welfare Council has also sent a
representation to the President of India in this regard asking her
to ensure justice to the boy.
(Courtesy The Tribune)
2
September 2009
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