Kirpan is an ornament not weapon: US judge

Police at the Wayne State University in Detroit should not have arrested a Sikh student for carrying 'kirpans', as it was part of his religious belief, a US judge has ruled.

Sukhpreet Singh Garcha (23) was arrested on August 14 for possessing a 10-inch knife on his hip and a 5-inch knife, concealed in his waistband. Garcha was charged with violating the city's knife ordinance, which prohibits carrying knives with blades longer than 3 inches, The Detroit News reported on Tuesday.

The American Civil Liberties Union and the religious group United Sikhs protested Garcha's arrest, saying the kirpan was not a weapon, but rather an ornamental article of faith that baptised Sikhs must wear at all times.

Judge Rudy Serra of the 36th District Court agreed, saying that the city's knife ordinance was intended to apply to people carrying 'a knife as a weapon or for some unlawful purpose'. Since Garcha was carrying the kirpan for religious reasons, the ordinance does not apply to him, the judge said.

WSU Public Safety Director Anthony Holt said his officers will comply with the ruling and would not arrest Garcha or other Sikh students who carry the implement, the paper said.      

The university, which still prohibits firearms, explosives, and knives with a blade longer than 3 inches on the campus, is reviewing possible changes to its weapons policies after the judgement, the report said.