New York : Indian PhD students Aditya Prakash and Urmi Bhattacheryya at the University of Colorado Boulder won a Rs 1.8 crore (USD 200,000) civil rights settlement over a discrimination incident involving palak paneer. The confrontation began after a staff member complained about the “pungent smell” of Prakash’s lunch. In his brief response, he said, “It’s just food. I’m heating and leaving.”
In their complaint, they alleged that after Prakash raised concerns about the “discriminatory treatment,” the university retaliated in response. The students also argued that departmental kitchen rules singled out South Asians, discouraging community members from opening their lunches in common areas. While Prakash said he was repeatedly called into meetings with senior faculty over accusations that he made staff “feel unsafe,” Bhattacheryya claimed she was fired from her teaching assistant position without an explanation.
The university finally agreed to pay the two Rs 1.8 crore (USD 200,000) in September 2025 and grant them their Master’s degrees. They were barred from future enrolment or employment at the university. The couple returned to India this month. In an Instagram post, Bhattacheryya reflected on the ordeal, writing, “This year, I fought a fight. A fight for the freedom to eat what I want, and to protest at will, no matter the colour of my skin, my ethnic extraction, or the unflinchingly unchanged Indian accent.”
She added, “I endured startling health reversals I’d never encountered before. My self-respect and confidence—things I’d always jealously safeguarded—were steadily chipped away, until these actions touched them. But not for long. The University of Colorado Boulder has confirmed that it reached a settlement with the students, but denied any liability. A spokesperson added that the university has procedures to handle allegations of discrimination and harassment and followed those processes in this case.
As news of the incident went viral, social media users congratulated the students on winning the lawsuit and praised them for their fight against discrimination. While one user said that he was going to celebrate the news with “more palak paneer”, another person said, “This is what raising your voice the right way looks like. Respect to the courage and work behind it.”
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