British Indian couple win £120K in discrimination case

A SOUTH ASIAN-origin couple from Maidenhead, Berkshire, has been awarded around £120,000 in damages.

The Sikh couple has been awarded on Friday (6) for damages after local adoption service rejected them citing their Indian roots.

The British Indian couple were banned by the council from adopting because 'only white children were available'.

Sandeep and Reena Mander sued The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead council in a major case after they were turned away from Adopt Berkshire 36 months ago.

The Oxford County Court awarded the couple after a four-day hearing in November. The couple was told their chances would be improved if they looked to adopt in India or Pakistan.

The court ruling awarded the husband and wife general damages of £29,454.42 each and special damages totalling £60,013.43 for the cost of adopting a child overseas.

The duo aged in their 30s legally moved against the council for discrimination, and their case has been backed by the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

After the ruling, the Asian origin couple said: “This decision ensures that no matter what race, religion or colour you are, you should be treated equally and assessed for adoption in the same way as any other prospective adopter.”

Judge Melissa Clarke ruled: “I find that the defendants directly discriminated against Mr and Mrs Mander on the grounds of race.”

The judge also made a declaration that the council 'directly discriminated' against the couple in the provision of adoption services on the grounds of race.

The judge said: 'I consider that there is clear evidence that Mr and Mrs Mander, who I have found expressed willingness to consider a child of any ethnicity, received less favourable treatment than would a comparable couple of a different ethnicity.

The couple believes that their experience with Adopt Berkshire was not just an isolated event.