Army gets 1st Sikh enlisted soldier since 1980s

Published 2:28 pm Wednesday, November 10, 2010

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Until Wednesday, there were no members of the Sikh faith in the enlisted ranks of the U.S. Army due to the service’s restrictions against beards and turbans.

The faith requires men to wear beards and turbans. The Army banned those “conspicuous articles of faith” in 1984.

But Spc. Simranpeet Lamba stepped onto Fort Jackson’s Hilton Field parade ground Wednesday with the rest of his basic training graduating class, wearing a beard and black turban. And he was selected by his fellow soldiers and drill instructor to carry the guidon flag for his platoon, a position of honor.

A native of New Delhi, Lamba also became a U.S. citizen.

“It is a dream come true to be in uniform and treated like any other soldier,” said Lamba. “If I can do it, maybe others can do it too.”

Lamba, who is training to be a combat medic, is the first enlisted soldier to receive an “accommodation,” or special exception, to wear his faith’s beard and turban. He worked for 10 months to get the exception before enrolling in his 10-week basic training course.

Lamba’s graduation was one of the highlights of the Veterans Day celebration Wednesday at the nation’s largest Army training base, a celebration held a day early so its soldiers could have Thursday off.

At the traditional wreath-laying ceremony, speaker Jack Van Loan, a prisoner of war in the infamous Hanoi Hilton for six years during the Vietnam War, said the day also is an opportunity to give thanks for the freedoms we enjoy as a nation, in addition to honoring veterans.

“I lost mine for six years, and not a day goes by that I don’t thank God that I got it back,” he said.

Maj. Gen. James “Mike” Milano said today’s soldiers “stand on the shoulders of men and women who fought valiantly before us,” including Van Loan.

But it was Lamba who stole the spotlight.

He received his beard-and-turban exemption by adapting a camouflaged, bandana-like turban to fit under his Kevlar helmet for training and combat, adapting a black turban with the blue infantry patch to match the other soldiers’ black berets, and proving a gas mask would seal over his beard.

His graduation ceremony was attended by one of only two Sikh officers in the Army — Capt. Kamal Kalsi, an Army doctor stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C., and a representative of The Sikh Coalition, which is seeking to overturn the Army’s restrictions against turbans and beards and assisted Lamba in getting his exemption.

“There is still a policy change that we are seeking,” said coalition representative Amardeep Singh. “We have the world’s greatest military tradition, and it’s a shame we can’t serve here. But we’re hopeful.”

Sikhism originated in India’s Punjab region in the 15th century. The term Sikh has its origin in the Sanskrit term for disciple or student. (The faith has been discussed, of late, in South Carolina because Gov.-elect Nikki Haley was raised a Sikh; today, however, Haley says she is a Methodist.)

Throughout its history, the religion has been known for producing warriors, who first resisted the Mogul rulers of India and later earned a reputation as British Indian troops in World Wars I and II.

Lamba came to the United States 3 ½ years ago and earned his master’s degree in industrial engineering at New York University. But even as a child, he wanted to be a soldier, saluting and marching around the house to the amusement of his parents, who live in India and were not able to attend Wednesday’s graduation.

“Now I can fulfill my dream of serving in the military and living a disciplined life,” he said. “I’m just like any other soldier. My appearance is just different.”