NEW DELHI: The Indian Supreme Court on Thursday ratified the Indian Air Force’s decision to ban its personnel from sporting beards, Indian media reported.
A bench headed by Indian top court Chief Justice TS Thakur dismissed the petition of Muslims who were sacked by the Indian Air Force for not removing their beards. It said that the institution’s decision did not infringe upon fundamental rights. Officers Mohammed Zubair and Ansari Aaftab Ahmed had moved a petition against a “confidential” order in 2003 banning beards.
Zubair had argued that the order was against his fundamental rights, but the court said regulations were meant for uniformity and discipline, and had nothing to do with religious rights. Zubair said such a ban contradicted a letter of the home minister, issued in 1990, that allowed Muslim and Sikh personnel to keep beards on religious grounds, provided they ask for permission.
During arguments in the case, representatives of the air force told the court that it was “undoubtedly a secular force with due regard for all religions and it is imperative that its personnel are guided by a sense of brotherhood without any distinction of caste, creed, colour or religion”.
