Helmets might become optional for Sikh women in Chandigarh
On Wednesday, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) advised the Chandigarh administration to make helmets optional for all Sikh women riding two-wheelers or sitting pillion, a practice followed in New Delhi. The advice comes at a time when the Punjab and Haryana High Court has questioned the Union Territory as to how it allows Sikh women to ride two-wheelers without wearing helmets. Here's more.
Sikh bodies had sought exemption for all Sikh women
On July 6, 2018, the Chandigarh administration amended an earlier notification exempting all women from wearing helmets to only turban-wearing Sikh women. However, Sikh bodies led by the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) objected to the amendment, and sought an exemption for all Sikh women, including non-turbaned ones. Subsequently, the Chandigarh administration informed the MHA, and sought its advice on the matter.
Punjab and Haryana HC: Accidents are blind to gender
Yet, earlier this year, a division bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court had observed that road accidents are blind to the gender of the driver/rider, and that allowing women to ride without helmets puts them at risk. The court's observation came while hearing a PIL which challenged laws in Chandigarh and Punjab that allowed women to ride without helmets.
