Durban school denies admission to Sikh boy

NO TURBAN IN DURBAN: Two schools in Durban have denied admission to a Sikh boy, alleges the mother of the boy.

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Keywords: Sikhs,Turban, Children

Durban: A Sikh woman has alleged that her son was turned away admission in two schools here because he had a long hair and wore a turban.

Beena Singh said that her son, Harkit, had been rejected admission by the Durban High School and Glenwood High School last month on religious grounds, according to The Extra, a supplement with the National Sunday Times.

A spokesperson for the provincial education department told the newspaper that the incident was a "serious matter" and they would investigate.

"An official would visit both schools to get to the root of the problem," he said.

Singh alleged that both schools rejected her application on the grounds that her son had a long hair and wore a turban, which is mandatory for Sikhs.

Both schools are former whites-only schools and have started admitting other race students since 1994. She subsequently succeeded in getting him admitted to Durban's Crawford College.

"He has been emotionally scared by this, but he is very happy at his new school. He is a good cricketer and has been accepted by his peers on the cricket field," Singh was quoted as saying by the paper.

However, the principals of both the schools have denied that there had been discrimination against the boy.

"It is totally incorrect to say that he was denied access because he is a Sikh or that he refused to cut his hair or take off his turban. We never even met the boy," Durban High School principal David manger told the newspaper.