Indian PhD Couple Awarded $200,000 After Palak Paneer Discrimination Case at US University

New Delhi: In a significant case highlighting cultural sensitivity and discrimination in academic spaces, an Indian PhD couple, Aditya Prakash and Urmi Bhattacheryya, have been awarded $200,000 following a settlement with the University of Colorado Boulder in the United States. The case stemmed from a September 2023 incident in which Prakash was questioned by a university staff member for microwaving palak paneer, an Indian dish, with objections raised over its “smell.” The couple alleged that the incident led to sustained harassment, discriminatory treatment, and retaliation by university authorities, including repeated disciplinary meetings, claims that staff felt unsafe, the loss of Bhattacheryya’s teaching assistantship, and delays in the awarding of their Master’s degrees.

In May 2025, the couple filed a federal civil rights lawsuit accusing the university of discrimination and retaliation. While the university denied wrongdoing, it agreed to a settlement in September 2025, awarding $200,000 to the couple and formally conferring their Master’s degrees. As part of the settlement, both individuals were barred from future enrolment or employment at the university. The couple, who stated they had no plans to return to the US, said the case underscores broader issues of cultural insensitivity toward ethnic food and minority communities in global academic institutions and hoped the outcome would encourage others to speak up against discrimination.