Google scrapped a talk on caste bias because some employees felt it was “anti Hindu”

A nixed event to be hosted by Google News has potentially revealed gaps in its diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts.

To honor the Dalit History Month in April, Thenmozhi Soundararajan, executive director of the US-based social justice organization Equality Labs, was scheduled to speak about caste-based discrimination in newsrooms at an internal Google News event. This event, which had been planned for three months, was abruptly postponed shortly before its scheduled date, according to a report in The Washington Post.

“During this time, opponents to caste equity internally circulated disinformation about Soundararajan and Equality Labs to derail the civil rights event until its ultimate cancellation,” Equality Labs said in a press release on June 2. According to The Washington Post, this disinformation included claims that Soundararajan and Equality Labs were “anti-Hindu” and represented “Hinduphobia,” terms commonly used by India’s right-wing supporters to discredit any criticism against Hinduism.