Plea to exempt burqa-clad women pillion riders from helmet.
By The American Bazaar Staff
NEW DELHI: Muslim women in India are rallying together to overturn a law that requires burqa-clad women to wear helmets while riding in the pillion seat of two-wheeler vehicles, saying that wearing a helmet on top of a burqa is not only uncomfortable, but dangerous as well.
The Indian Transport Department enacted a rule making it mandatory for everyone, men and women, to wear a helmet while riding in the pillion seat of a two-wheeler, but has received criticism from ethnic minority groups that say the regulation makes it difficult for them to sit properly and safely.
Sikh groups successfully lobbied to have the law amended in their favor, and now Muslims want them same privilege afforded to their women, saying that putting a helmet on top of an already visually restrictive burqa complicates things to the point where women should not even be riding on a two-wheeler at all.
In May, the Transport Department collected complaints on the matter, and now it appears that they are ready to rule on the matter in the near future. The Press Trust of India reports that Transport Department Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung has received all the complaints and necessary related information to make his decision, which he will announce in the next few days.
If the decision is made to allow Muslim women not to wear helmet when riding in the pillion seat, it would be a huge victory for minority rights in India. Muslim women, however, would still need to wear a helmet if and when operating a two-wheeler themselves, in the main seat (the pillion seat is the name for the additional passenger seat on the back of a scooter, motorcycle, or two-wheel automotive device).
A timeline for when the Transport Department will actually make this announcement has not been given, but it is expected quite soon.