The bench asked the respondents to file their reply on the plea, which has sought constitution of a committee to examine the “practical solution” to ensure that the permission to carry a saber in flight is “reasonable”. designed and produced”.
The bench asked the respondents to file their reply on the plea, which has sought constitution of a committee to examine the “practical solution” to ensure that the permission to carry a saber in flight is “reasonable”. designed and produced”.
The Delhi High Court on Thursday refused to pass an interim order allowing Sikhs to carry kirpans up to six inches in length while traveling on domestic flights.
Seeking the stand of the Center and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) challenging the notification dated March 4, 2022, a bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramaniam Prasad said, “There is no stay. ” in this regard.
The bench asked the respondents to file their reply on the plea, which has sought constitution of a committee to examine the “practical solution” to ensure that the saber allowed to be carried on flight is “proper”. is specially designed and made” and does not have a blade. Length more than 4 cm.
The petition, by advocate Harsh Vibhor Singhal, states that allowing sabers on flights, in terms of the dimensions currently permissible, has “dangerous implications for aviation safety” and “if sabers are considered safe merely because of religion, then any Wonders how knitting/crochet needles, coconuts, screwdrivers and small pen knives etc are considered dangerous and prohibited.
“Despite the contrary belief, the kirpan is the blade used in hundreds of murders, even several murder cases decided by the Supreme Court. Thus, kirpans can cause mayhem in the sky , thereby making aviation security void,” said the petition challenging the permission granted to Sikhs to carry kirpans with blade length up to six inches while traveling in civilian flights in the country.
The petition argues that regulatory permitting is lax in law, undermines civil aviation safety protocols as well as international conventions, and has been promulgated without application of mind despite “historic lessons in aviation hijacking”.
The petition states that the petitioner was “concerned in the whimsical and unmistakable manner” in which the authorities shook “historic lessons surrounding civil aviation safety and security protocols by giving a blanket regulatory approval for unrestricted and unsafe carriage”. Articles on a person belonging to a certain class of air travelers (on the basis of religion).
“While the exception for Sikh travellers limits the length of a kirpan to a maximum length of 15.24 cm (6″) with an overall length of 22.86 cm (9″), including a length of 3”, it is at max. Quiet is the width and thickness of the blade starting from the hilt and gradually thinning to the pointed end. It is a matter of elementary physics that a blade with a narrow width at the base is less lethal than the ability to pierce, cut, cut or cut. The thick broad base gradually moves towards the pointed tips,” the petition said.
The petition said that under Article 25 of the Constitution all conflicting interests should be balanced and religious freedom should be given priority and laws and regulations should be given priority for public safety and protection of property.
In a notification dated March 4, 2022, the central government stated that Sikh passengers shall have extraordinary regulatory clearance to carry kirans, whose blade length does not exceed 6 inches and an overall length of 9 inches, during any civilian flight in India. will not exceed. Which is running on all domestic routes.
The next hearing of the case will be on December 15.