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Harvinder Singh has still not received his degree from Durham College, as venue security prevented him from attending his own convocation due to Sabre. Singh was wearing a kirpan â a short sword worn by Sikhs as their religious garb, as they usually do, when he was stopped.
Singh said, “They stopped me because they said, at that point, it’s a sharp object, we can’t go â we can’t bring you in because of that. But I explained to them that it’s part of my body. They couldn’t recognize it and they didn’t let me in.”
“I told them it’s my religious symbol, I can’t take it off my body. Like, we even sleep with it.”
The graduation ceremony was held off-campus on June 18 at the Tribute Community Center in Oshawa. Singh said security did not allow him to enter the venue for the convocation, though he never faced any problem while wearing the kirpan on campus.
A spokesperson for the venue said that they fully respect the religious significance of the sabre, but the saber worn by Singh does not meet Durham College’s permitted size requirements.
A Tribute Communities Center spokesperson said, “Our team followed Durham College’s established policies during the convocation ceremony held at our venue at their request. These policies allow for the wearing of sabers under specific circumstances, including a maximum length of seven (7) inches.”
“While we fully respect the religious significance of the saber, the size of the saber worn by the individual in question was estimated by our event operations staff to be between 18-24 inches. Our staff responded in accordance with established procedures while prioritizing both respect for religious freedom and the safety of all guests.”
Durham College’s Kirpan policy recognizes individuals who practice Sikhism and wear a Kirpan as part of their religious garb. In their policy statement, they specify that the saber should not exceed seven inches and that the saber should be worn under clothing so that it is not visible.
âDC (Durham College) respects the rights of those who practice Sikhism to wear a kirpan as part of their religious beliefs, and, to reaffirm this commitment, the College has a holding a saber policy “To support individuals wearing the Saber and facilitate their inclusion on DC campuses and all DC-sanctioned activities,” said Lindsey Holley, director of communications and marketing at Durham College.
Durham College said in a statement that they were unable to provide specific details regarding the incident. This also includes why Singh has not received his degree yet and whether the college is in touch with the venue.
Singh said he has been talking to the college, but has not received any concrete response. The World Sikh Organization (WSO) said it filed a formal notice with the college after Singh approached them for support. The WSO said they had only received a response from Durham College regarding the college’s saber policy and could not comment on the specifics of the situation.
WSO legal counsel Balpreet Singh said, “I can say that this is a completely shocking and unacceptable example of discrimination.”
“The Supreme Court of Canada has made absolutely clear that Saber should be included and that a student being excluded from his own convocation was in accordance with the College’s own Saber policy, which is completely unacceptable.”
Singh graduated from IBM International Business Management in June and is now enrolled in an IT course at Durham College. Students who are eligible for graduation receive their degrees whether or not they attend convocation. But Singh said he has not received his degree even after almost four months since he was barred from attending the convocation ceremony.
“This is a process when students don’t go there to get a degree, they can get a degree from a college. I didn’t even get a degree from a college,” Singh said.
Jaspreet Pandher, with files from OMNI News