PESHAWAR – In a matchless show of tolerance, the Sikh community has been granted exemption from helmet laws in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s capital, Peshawar due to their religious headdress (turban).
The directives were issued after minority member Sardar Ranjeet Singh raised the issue in the assembly, following which Peshawar police eased the laws for the community.
The exemption only applies to members of the community who are wearing turbans while riding motorcycles.
The SSP of traffic in Peshawar Kashif Zulfiqar assured full cooperation with minority communities as 60,000 Sikhs live Pakistan’s Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), including 15,000 who reside in Peshawar alone.
The Lahore traffic police have intensified operation against violators who do not use helmets.
By the end of September, the City Traffic Police Lahore (CTPL) had issued over 58,066 tickets to motorcyclists riding without helmets in Lahore. The prices of helmets surged in the city after the crackdown.
A helmet that was being sold between Rs400 and Rs500 was now being sold between Rs1,000 and Rs1,500 with authorities having no clue how to curb the exorbitant rise.
