The California Civil Rights Department (CRD) has amended a 2020 complaint against Cisco Systems, acknowledging that caste is not an essential part of Hinduism. The motion was “voluntarily” filed by the department in the first weeks of December to revise their complaint against Cisco Systems alleging that caste discrimination occurred at the Silicon Valley tech giant, according to a press release from the Hindu American Foundation (HAF). “In a victory for Hindu Americans, the amended complaint removes the erroneous and unconstitutional assertion that caste and caste discrimination is an essential part of Hindu religious teachings and practices,” HAF said. 

The lawsuit, filed in 2020, alleged that two Indian American Cisco engineers — Sundar Iyer and Ramana Kompella — discriminated and harassed a fellow employee based on his low-caste status. The Dalit engineer received less pay and fewer opportunities and the defendants retaliated against him, the lawsuit alleged, adding that the defendants retaliated against him when he opposed “unlawful practices, contrary to the traditional order between the Dalit and higher castes.” Last year, the CRD voluntarily dismissed its case alleging caste discrimination against Iyer and Kompella, while still keeping alive its litigation against tech giant Cisco.