Toronto, Canada - Baljinder Badesha never imagined that his religious devotion would compel him to race a motorcycle around an Ontario speedway to test whether turbans unravel at high speeds.
The bizarre image of 39-year-old Badesha's experiment last year - conducted under the auspices of the Ontario Human Rights Commission - was evoked during a constitutional challenge to a law that forces motorcycle riders to wear a helmet.
Badesha's counsel Mel Sokosky told Judge James Blacklock on Sunday that in order to disprove a Crown theory that turbans unravel at high speed and cause accidents, Badesha drove around Cayuga Speedway at 110 kilometres an hour.
Badesha and the human rights commission maintain the helmet law discriminates against Sikhs because their religion obliges them to cover their long hair with nothing else but a turban.
He is fighting a USD 110 ticket he received in September 2005 for wearing a turban instead of a helmet while riding his motorcycle.
Supported by the Ontario Human Rights Commission, the used car dealer is arguing his religious beliefs require him to wear a turban outside his home and prohibit him from wearing a helmet. Forcing him to wear a helmet violates his human rights, he says.
Mel said his client is far too religious to consider compromising his beliefs. Badesha's desire is not a trivial pursuit," he said. "This is not a game he is playing. He isn't here to waste the court's time. This is a matter of primary importance to Badesha."