Sikhs to guard British queen

 
Queen Elizabeth II will be guarded by two turbaned and bearded men in their 20s.
The photographs of Signaler Simranjit Singh, 26, and Lance Corporal Sarvjit Singh, 28, were splashed across the pages of British newspapers, shown posing with their guns inside Buckingham Palace, the Queen’s sprawling London residence.

Simranjit Singh, who serves with the 21st Signal Regiment based in Chippenham, Wiltshire, took over his royal duties in May. He was joined later by Sarvjit Singh, who serves with the 3rd Regiment Army Air Corps based in Wattisham, Suffolk. The two men have been allowed to keep their turbans, long hair and beards in their new jobs. Leading members of Britain’s Sikh community welcomed the move as “long overdue”, pointing out that Queen Victoria used to have Sikh personal guards.

The appointment comes two years after Britain’s defence chiefs abandoned plans to raise a regiment of British Sikhs after discussions with the Commission for Racial Equality.