Friday, March 29, 2024
ADVT 
National

Supreme Court Won't Hear Appeal Of Quebec Legislature's Kirpan Ban

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 25 Oct, 2018 11:45 AM

    OTTAWA — The Supreme Court of Canada has refused to hear the appeal of a Sikh man and woman who were prohibited from entering Quebec's legislature while wearing kirpans.

     

    Today's decision upholds previous decisions from the Quebec Superior Court and Quebec Court of Appeal that found the legislature had the right to establish its own rules.

     

    Balpreet Singh and Harminder Kaur did not want to part with their ceremonial daggers as they headed into a legislature hearing to submit a brief in January 2011.

     

    The pair are members of the World Sikh Organization of Canada and originally argued the legislature's ban was unconstitutional, but then changed their position to say it was legal but non-binding.

     

    Superior Court Justice Pierre Journet rejected their arguments in 2015, affirming the authority of the legislature to exclude kirpans from its precincts as an assertion of parliamentary privilege.

     

    In 2006, the Supreme Court of Canada sanctioned the wearing of kirpans in schools across the country, recognizing the religious character of the object.

     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

    WSO STATEMENT ON DENIAL OF LEAVE TO APPEAL SINGH V. A.G. QUEBEC

     
     

    he World Sikh Organization of Canada is deeply disappointed by today’s decision of the Supreme Court of Canada to deny leave to appeal in the case Singh, et al. v. Attorney General of Québec.

     

    In January 2011, the appellants in the case, Harminder Kaur and Balpreet Singh were part of a WSO delegation that had been invited to make a presentation at the Quebec National Assembly on on Bill 94 which would deny essential government services, public employment to individuals who wear facial coverings.

     

    The WSO’s team was excluded from the hearing before the Committee on Institutions because they were wearing the kirpan. The Sikh faith requires initiated men and women to wear the five Sikh articles of faith, including the kirpan, at all times.

     

    In February 2018, the Quebec Court of Appeal had rejected the WSO’s on the grounds that the Quebec National Assembly may exclude individuals based on parliamentary privilege. The Superior Court decision below had upheld the authority of the QNA to "exclude kirpans from its precincts as an assertion of parliamentary privilege over the exclusion of strangers.''

     

    The Quebec Court of Appeal decision noted that the court "make[s] no comment whether the assembly's exercise of the privilege to exclude the kirpan is a wise decision.”

     

    Earlier this month the Supreme Court of Canada released a decision in the case Chagnon v. Syndicat de la fonction publique et parapublique du Québec which developed a new framework for legislatures exercising parliamentary privilege when Charter rights are at stake. The framework developed in Chagnon replaced the framework that was used to decide Singh v. A.G. Quebec.

     

    Earlier today, the Supreme Court of Canada denied the WSO’s leave application to appeal the Quebec Court of Appeal decision.

     

    WSO President Mukhbir Singh said today, “we are disappointed by today’s decision to deny leave to appeal in the Singh v. A.G. of Quebec case. While we appreciate that this decision is not so much about the kirpan as it is about parliamentary privilege, we believe that there continues to be a serious violation of freedom of religion by excluding Sikhs who wear the kirpan from the Quebec National Assembly. In Canada, the kirpan is completely prohibited in only two places- prison and the Quebec National Assembly.

     

    Excluding an entire religious community from the province’s legislature is deeply troubling. Given the political climate in Quebec with the current government threatening a ban on religious symbols in general, we fear that religious minorities in Quebec risk being marginalized and excluded even further. While we were hopeful that our case would be revisited based on the new framework for parliamentary privilege developed by the Supreme Court of Canada in the recently released Chagnon case, we are reviewing all our options under Canadian and international law.”

    MORE National ARTICLES

    Power Outage At Vancouver International Airport Affecting Domestic Terminal, Some Flight Delays

    Power Outage At Vancouver International Airport Affecting Domestic Terminal, Some Flight Delays
    A power outage at Vancouver International Airport's domestic terminal forced a handful of flight cancellations and several delays Thursday morning.

    Power Outage At Vancouver International Airport Affecting Domestic Terminal, Some Flight Delays

    Meet The Surrey Mayor-Elect Doug Mccallum And His South Asian Team Members

    Former city mayor Doug McCallum made a stunning comeback in Surrey Saturday night and created arguably the biggest stir of election night in B.C.

    Meet The Surrey Mayor-Elect Doug Mccallum And His South Asian Team Members

    TELUS Is Giving An Unprecedented $120 Million To Help Vulnerable Youth Reach Their Full Potential

    TELUS launches the TELUS Friendly Future Foundation, which provides grants to grassroots charities and gives kids a brighter future

    TELUS Is Giving An Unprecedented $120 Million To Help Vulnerable Youth Reach Their Full Potential

    Natural Gas In B.C. Limited Through The Winter After Pipeline Blast: FortisBC

    Natural Gas In B.C. Limited Through The Winter After Pipeline Blast: FortisBC
    SURREY, B.C. — A British Columbia natural gas supplier is warning its one million customers to expect reduced supplies and "challenges in times of high demand" as winter looms.

    Natural Gas In B.C. Limited Through The Winter After Pipeline Blast: FortisBC

    B.C. Jury Trial Hears Man Charged With Murder Confessing To Killing Girl, 12

    B.C. Jury Trial Hears Man Charged With Murder Confessing To Killing Girl, 12
      VANCOUVER — A man charged with killing a 12-year-old British Columbia girl provided details in a video seen in court, saying he abducted, sexually assaulted and strangled her near Merritt.

    B.C. Jury Trial Hears Man Charged With Murder Confessing To Killing Girl, 12

    Feds Face Calls To Open Saudi Deal After PM Says Cancelling Would Cost Taxpayers

    Feds Face Calls To Open Saudi Deal After PM Says Cancelling Would Cost Taxpayers
    OTTAWA — The controversy surrounding Canada's $15-billion deal to sell armoured vehicles to Saudi Arabia got deeper on Tuesday, as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau revealed that taxpayers would pay "significant financial penalties" if the contract was cancelled.

    Feds Face Calls To Open Saudi Deal After PM Says Cancelling Would Cost Taxpayers

    PrevNext