A surprising case has come to light from America which has taken even the social media by surprise. An American university paid compensation of Rs 1.8 crore to two Indians only because the staff there stopped the two Indians from heating palak paneer in their canteen. Yes, but the reason behind this is also quite interesting. Let us tell you.

Controversy over Palak Paneer

In fact, a case is becoming increasingly viral on social media in which it is being claimed that Indian students doing PhD in the Anthropology Department of the University of Colorado Boulder, America, had to pay a compensation of Rs 1.8 crore to the university. The only thing was that Aditya Prakash, who was a student of that university, was heating the Palak Paneer brought in his lunch in the microwave kept in the canteen, at the same time a female staff member came there and started shouting and complaining about the smell of the food. After this Aditya was also asked not to use the microwave.

University gave compensation of Rs 1.8 crore to Indian students

Aditya stopped the staff member from shouting and said that it was just food and he was leaving after heating it, but instead of calming down, the matter escalated further and the matter reached the court. Where in a long-heard civil rights case, the court ordered the university to pay Rs 2 lakh as compensation to Aditya Prakash and his partner Urmi Bhattacharya. After this, the university not only gave both of them 2 lakh dollars but also gave them master’s degrees. However, after this case, the university banned both of them from studying and working in the university for the future, after which both of them returned to India forever.

Also read: Video: ‘Will he abuse his mother?’, ruckus over seat dispute in Delhi Metro, fierce scuffle, watch video

Users said, Palak Paneer made them rich

As soon as this matter went viral on social media, lakhs of people reacted to it. One user wrote… If you have got so much money then why feel ashamed in coming to India. Another user wrote… Wow, Palak Paneer made me rich. So another user wrote…got 1.8 crores but lost the job. Now their issue of Palak Paneer is going viral on social media.

Also read: What kind of Ravana is this… Burning Ravana riding on a small elephant, users in panic after watching the video

Aditya Prakash, who is doing PhD in the Department of Anthropology, University of Colorado Boulder, was heating his homemade Palak Paneer in the department’s microwave on September 5, 2023. Then suddenly a staff member came to him and complained about the strong smell of food and asked him not to use the microwave. Aditya was 34 years old at that time. Maintaining calm, he said clearly, ‘It’s just food. I am leaving after warming up. But the matter did not end here. This incident later became a big case of racial discrimination and retaliation against a renowned university of America.

Aditya Prakash was a fully funded PhD student at the time of the incident. His partner Urmi Bhattacharya, herself a PhD scholar, was doing well academically. Everything remained normal for the first one year, but after the Palak Paneer incident, the situation changed. Aditya alleges that when he raised questions about discrimination, the university started a series of continuous harassment against him.

called in front of senior faculty

He was repeatedly called before the senior faculty. He was told that because of him the staff was feeling unsafe. Complaints were made against him to the Office of Student Conduct. Urmi Bhattacharya says that the job of teaching assistant was taken away from her without any warning. Two days later, when she brought Indian food with some students, she was even accused of inciting a riot on the campus. However, these complaints were later rejected.

Systemic racism and civil rights case

In May 2025, Aditya and Urmi filed a civil rights case in the US federal court (District of Colorado). They alleged that the department’s kitchen policy has an unequal and discriminatory impact on South Asian students. Indian students are intimidated from opening their food in common places. Aditya called it not just an incident but systematic racism.

Settlement of 2 lakh dollars, but ban on withdrawal

In September 2025, the University of Colorado Boulder reached a settlement in this matter. Under this, a total of 2 lakh dollars (about Rs 1.7 crore) were given to Aditya and Urmi. Both were given a master’s degree mid-way through their PhD, but were permanently barred from studying or working at a university in the future. The university issued a statement saying it does not admit any wrongdoing, but the matter has been resolved. Shortly after this, both the students returned to India forever.

Student Support Institutional Paradox

In this entire controversy, 29 students of the Anthropology department openly supported Aditya and Urmi. Describing the reaction of the department as harmful, he said that diversity in a subject like Anthropology should not only be tolerated but also respected. This statement also matched the university’s own Systemic Racism Statement, which was on paper but not visible in practice. Urmi Bhattacharya believes that this incident is also related to the changing political environment in America, especially after the return of Donald Trump, changes have been seen.

Also read: Oil Imports: India stuck between America, Russia and Venezuela! Know how oil import became the cause of problems