Jedi prisoners planning to sue prison service for 'not recognising Star Wars religion' #CarryGobySeanKellz #FutureGroupNG via @i_amreginaldjr

CONVICTS who follow the Jedi Knight Star Wars religion are planning to sue the prison service for discrimination for not recognising their faith

A group of Jedi prisoners are planning to sue the prison service for not recognising their religion[GETTY]

The group of inmates claim their beliefs are treated as a “joke” despite Jedi being the UK’s seventh most popular religion.

There are at least 50 Jedi convicts in UK jails and a number of them have contacted the Jedi Knight Society and Temple of the Jedi Order to get backing for their "long" legal fight.

One of the unnamed inmates said they were "disgusted" Jediism was not among 18 religions recognised by the National Offender Management Service (NOMS).

The proposed legal fight was sparked by a prisoner at the 622-capacity HMP Isis in Thamesmead who contacted inmates’ magazine Inside Time.

Jedi is the UK's seventh most popular religion [GETTY]

 

I recently put in an application asking that I be allowed to practise my religion freely - I am a Jedi

A prisoner at HMP Isis

The unnamed prisoner's letter, which was published two weeks ago, claimed he had been denied the "right" to follow the religion, which has 180,000 devotees across the UK.

It sparked three other inmates from prisons in south east London to contact one another by post and e-mail to discuss how to protest.

Followers of approved religions, which include Paganism and Rastafarianism, are given "special dispensation" and access to "prayers packs".

They are also given days off work in prison for religious holidays.

The Jedi prisoner who said he was refused permission to follow his religion at HMP Isis said he was unhappy that his religious freedom was being denied.

In his letter published earlier this month, he wrote: "I recently put in an application asking that I be allowed to practise my religion freely - I am a Jedi.

"The written reply said 'Whilst Jedi is a recognised religion according to the UK census, it is not recognised by the National Offender Management Service and we cannot change your religious record because of this.'

"This is an example of the kind of intolerance and religious bigotry faced by members of our faith on a daily basis, both within the prison system and without."

The Jedi religion is based on the iconic Star Wars movies [WENN]

His complainant has been flagged up to the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and it sparked other inmates to rally around him.

Two of those inmates have contacted Jedi expert Ob8 who said he would represent them in their legal fight.

The other two, which includes the inmate from HMP Isis, are considering whether to consult Ob8.

The expert said: "There are at least 50 Jedi warriors in prison in the UK and they are not being fairly treated.

"We have contacted The Jedi Knight Society and the Temple of the Jedi Order to try and get some more backing to sue the prison service for discrimination, but it will be a long fight.

"The most recent PSI has included Quakerism and Rastafarianism - and already includes Paganism - so we must ask 'Why not Jediism when it is more popular than most of the other religions'?"

A spokesman for the Prison Service said that Jediism was 'not a recognised religion' and refused to comment on 'individual cases'.

The Jedi prisoners say they are being treated "as a joke" despite only Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism, Judaism and Buddhism being more popular in the UK.

It was recognised as an official religion in the 2001 census.