A US military business is being sued by an Indian-American engineer who claims his dismissal was the result of a coworker overhearing him speaking Hindi in the workplace.
Anil Varshney has accused Parsons Corporation of “unlawful discriminatory actions” in a complaint that was filed in a court in Alabama.
The coworker allegedly fraudulently reported him for breaking “security regulations” while he was on the phone with a dying relative in India, according to him.
The claims have been refuted by Parsons.
In a statement reaching the media, it claimed that Mr. Varshney had been fired for “several security violations, including using Facetime on his personal phone in a government-controlled worksite among other previous security violations where such actions are prohibited and pose risks to national security.”
Additionally, the business stated that the “series of documented improper conduct” was against both company and governmental standards.
Additionally, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin is identified as the legal representation for the nation’s Missile Defence Agency (MDA) in the case, which was filed in the Northern District of Alabama.
The lawsuit claims that Mr. Varshney, 78, worked for Parsons between July 2011 and October 2022.
It claims that in September of this year, he was talking to his dying brother-in-law in an empty cubicle at work “for about two minutes” when a coworker noticed him and reported him to corporate officials.
According to Mr. Varshney, he checked that there were no “classified materials or anything else pertaining to the MDA or Parsons’ work anywhere near him” before making the call.
He asserts that the business sacked him in October after accusing him of committing “a serious security violation” despite the fact that there was no policy prohibiting the conversation and there had been no inquiry.
It continues, “Worse, they barred him from future [MDA] employment, putting a stop to his career and life of service to MDA and the US government.