A 14-year-old girl, Sarika Watkins-Singh, spent nine weeks working in isolation in a classroom, prevented from joining her friends in the playground, and accompanied by a teacher when she went to the toilet. All due to her determination to wear a metal bangle, known as a kara, which is one of the five outward signs worn by Sikhs to show their faith. Sarika, who is of Welsh and Punjabi heritage, became an observant Sikh after travelling to India in 2005. She was suspended from Aberdare girls’ school in south Wales last November when she refused to remove her kara, and yesterday a high court judge ruled that her exclusion was unlawful, concluding that the school was guilty of indirect discrimination under race relations (Sikhs are classed as a race) and equality laws. Backed by the human rights organisation Liberty, the Watkins-Singh family felt compelled to take the case to court.
In 2005, the court of appeal granted Shabina Begum permission to wear a jilbab – a full-length robe – to Denbigh High School in Luton. However, this verdict was later nullified by the House of Lords. At Denbigh High School, Muslims made up more than three-quarters of the student body, and the headteacher accommodated this with a uniform that included the shalwar kameez – a tunic worn over baggy trousers. Begum’s supporters argued that this uniform did not meet their standards for modesty. The school countered that the current uniform was sufficient and that imposing a stricter dress code to accommodate Begum was not in the students’ best interests. Riazat Butt reported on this matter.