Originally Posted by
dojj
more bandwagon jumpers then on pf eh
i followed the story when it broke and i think it's fairly simple that if you don't understand the reasons behind the wearing of the turban etc then you won't understand why asking for it to be removed has caused such an isue
we don't have to wear helmets when riding bikes, the coppers in west london don't have to wear helmets/hats when they are on duty, just as long as the turban is black they get a little badge to stick on the front and a bit of black and white tape to go around the outside, so why couldn't they have observed the same rules in the rest of the country?
so all your questions answered in one short post
care to continue the misinformed arguement?
Dojj, I think you may not have followed the story close enough mate. Basically he was told he had to go riot training, now, as you can all guess this means having wooden blocks chucked at you and then being petrol bombed.
Now bear in mind for this you have to wear a shed load of protection, it does not take a genius to work out that you at least need to wear a protective and fireproof helmet
Also, bear in mind again if you will then when the petrol bombs smash in front of you, you do get glass showered over you so for this reason you also need to wear the visor of the helmet down. How the heck he would have done it wearing his turban I have no idea.
He decided that he wanted the training, but did not want to remove his turban. He was told he had to in order to partake, and health and safety (ie his turban would set on fire) dictated the headgear. I also recall that he wanted to miss the fire bomb training in case he set fire to his beard.
So, he was told headgear or nothing, he decided it was racist and gets a payout as the force were harassing him due to his religion.
So, NO, we are not talking about day to day policing, we are talking about a particular aspect of policing that required an exact type of uniform.
I know lots of Sikh officers who as previously stated remove their turban, replace with a less bulky bandanna, then happily wear the helmet required to complete the training.