Judge To Sikh In Mississippi Court: ‘Remove That Rag’

Judge Aubrey Rimes of Pike County District Court told Jagjeet Singh, a practicing Sikh that he should “remove that rag” from his head, that somehow offended this fine legal professional.

Singh was pulled over in January for a flat tire, and was harassed by the state’s Department of Transportation officers who wrongly assumed that his kirpan, a small spiritual sword that is a religious article for Sikhs, was illegal. They taunted him as a “terrorist” and arrested him for refusing to obey “an officer’s lawful command,” reports the ACLU.

On his March 26th court date, Judge Aubrey Rimes of the Pike County Justice Court ejected him from the courtroom stating that Singh would not be allowed to re-enter unless he removed “that rag” from his head.

Singh’s attorney confirmed that Rimes expelled him due to his turban. However, Singh’s faith mandates the covering and he believes that to unwrap it in public would be both sacrilegious and shameful.

By: Cheston Catalano

Cheston Catalano is a Kentucky-based journalist whose work has been featured in the Chattanooga Times Free Press and the Clarksville Leaf Chronicle. He is a long-time contributor to Liberaland.