small number of Sikhs allowed to retain articles of faith, grandfathered in after a change in policy. In April 2009, Sikh Army Captain Kamaljeet S. Kalsi, a doctor, with the help of the Sikh Coalition, filed an objection to the Inspector General and the Department of Defense to be allowed to continue to serve with his religious apparel intact. Army Reserve Second Lieutenant Tejdeep Singh Rattan, a dentist, joined in filing the petition. Kalsi joined the Army via its Health Professions Scholarship Program and had been reassured by the recruiter that wearing the uniform while retaining his religiously required appearance and apparel would not be a problem. Kalsi had even served in uniform without any problems at West Point and Travis Air Force Base. Yet, a problem arose in early 2009 when the Pentagon told Kalsi and Rattan that they would be called to active duty and would need to shave their beards and stop wearing their turbans. The Sikh Coalition argued that not allowing the servicemembers to continue to maintain their appearance according to their religion violated the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993. The Army argued that continued wear of the turban and beard violated current regulation, that would hinder the servicemembers from meeting health, safety, and mission requirements including the use of gas masks. In late October 2009, Kalsi was allowed an exemption to the policy, and would be able to serve while adhering to his religious beliefs. The Army continues to maintain that these were specific determinations due to the individual case and that present regulations will not change, however the Sikh Coalition holds out that this will be the beginning of a policy shift that will allow other Sikhs to serve their country in uniform. The case of Rattan was put on hold, pending his completion of the dental boards exam. Upon graduation from basic officer training at Fort Sam Houston as a captain on March 22, 2010 Rattan was also granted an exemption. A third serviceman, Specialist Lamba, who graduated from Fort Jackson in November 2010 was also granted an exemption. After a legal battle, Army Captain Simratpal Singh won a long-term religious accommodation in 2016 that allowed him to maintain the articles of his Sikh faith while serving. Specialist Harpal Singh (US Army Reserves), Specialist Kanwar Singh (MA National Guard) and Private Arjan Ghotra (VA National Guard) were also allowed to attend Army's