NEW YORK — Military service is in Capt. Kamaljit Singh Kalsi’s blood. His father and grandfather were part of India’s Air Force. His great- grandfather served in the army in India under the British. So when U.S. Army recruiters talked to him during his first year of medical school, he readily signed up.
But his plans to go on active duty in July are on hold. An Army policy from the 1980s that regulates the wearing of religious items would mean he would need to shave his beard and remove the turban he wears in accordance with his religious precepts.
Kalsi and another Sikh man with the same concerns, Second Lt. Tejdeep Singh Rattan, are the centerpieces of an advocacy campaign launched by the Sikh Coalition as it tries to persuade the Army to let them serve without sacrificing their articles of faith.
“I’m an American. There’s no reason why I can’t serve,” said Kalsi, 32.
Army officials declined to comment on the reasoning behind its policy. Sikhs who were active-duty military when the policy was adopted were allowed to continue serving without shaving their beards or removing their turbans.
The Pentagon and other military institutions wouldn’t comment.
