Auckland – On Tuesday, a 30-year-old Sikh man working in New Zealand was barred from Manurewa Cosmopolitan club prompting him to lodge a complaint to the Human Rights Commission alleging religious discrimination for refusing to remove his turban.

Gurpreet Singh, a real estate agent, was with workmates who had decided to go for a meal at the club, but he was told by reception that the club had a no-headwear policy which included turbans.

“They tried to explain that this is not a head gear,” he said, but in the end the group was forced to find another place to eat.

It was the first time he had experienced discrimination based on his religion in seven years of living in New Zealand.

Mr Singh said if this was the first time an incident had happened, he might overlook it, but the club had been called out on its policy before.

“They’re not trying to understand other religions,” he said.

Mr Singh would like to see the policy changed or modified to allow for those wearing turbans for religious reasons to be allowed entry, to come into line with the rest of New Zealand.

“Even for a passport or a licence we are allowed to wear a turban,” he said.

In the rules section of the club’s website, it’s stated that headgear is only allowed for medical or special event purposes.

Mr Singh has now made a complaint with the Human Rights Commission.

Club Manager Patricia Rangi said the rule had “nothing to do with religion at all” and said the issue had been looked at by club management before when another complaint was made in 2010.

“We’re not against the religion – it’s just a long-standing rule,” she said.

“It just rules out caps and hoodies and beanies.”

She said the result of the previous Human Rights Commission investigation was that, as a private club, it was entitled to refuse entry on any grounds it wished.

It is also pertinent to mention here that last Month, a NZ Sikh Man Harman Singh Saved A Boy’s Life Using His Turban.

The world had lauded him, and the Sikh spirit of kindness and  social service. An NZ TV crew had then rewarded him with a with a new bed, sofa, chair and coffee table, after tying up with a local furniture store.

Professor Andrew Geddis of Otago University law school said in his opinion, the club appeared to be acting unlawfully.

Under the Human Rights Act one of the grounds under which you could not discriminate was religious belief, he said.

“Because wearing the turban is a non-negotiable part of the religion, if you have a rule that you’re not allowed in here with head coverings, you’re discriminating against people of that particular religious belief.”

But to find out for certain a ruling would need to be made by the Human Rights Review Tribunal.