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California Guv Vetoes ‘Kirpan Bill’

Finding it ‘unnecessary’, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has vetoed a bill to educate law enforcement officers about the religious significance of ‘kirpans’, drawing strong reaction from the Sikh community in the US.

Governor’s decision was a shock to the organizations, individuals and lawmakers who supported the bill.

In a statement, advocacy group Sikh Coalition said that the veto was particularly surprising keeping in mind bipartisan votes in favour of the bill in both houses of legislature.

It may be mentioned that the bill was unanimously passed by both Houses, 77-0 in the Assembly and 36-0 in the senate.

Prabhjot Singh, Sikh Coalition Board Chairman, said describe it as the loss for the Sikh community, which is also a reminder of their serious lack of political clout in the state and that after months of hard work and 100 per cent support from our lawmakers, the Sikh voice was still not strong enough to overcome the whim of one man.

Warren Furutani, an Assembly member, had introduced the Bill AB 504 to use education to help stem the arrests of Sikhs for carrying kirpans in California.

In the absence of an understanding among law enforcers, there has been an increase in arrests of Sikhs in the country for carrying kirpans over the last few years.

The Sikh Coalition said that police mistakenly believe them to be in violation of concealed weapons laws.

“AB 504 was our first attempt to change this,” the statement said.

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