CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- A federal judge is letting a University of Virginia medical student move ahead with his free-speech lawsuit against school officials who suspended him after he asked pointed questions at a panel about microaggressions.
School officials had asked the judge to dismiss the lawsuit brought by student Kieran Bhattacharya; they said the questions he asked during a 2018 faculty-led panel were offensive and unworthy of free-speech protections.
But a judge sided with Bhattacharya and ruled that the questions the student asked during the panel were pointed but academic in nature.
A faculty member issued a “professionalism concern card” against Bhattacharya after his questioning.
The citation led to a requirement that Bhattacharya be evaluated by a counselor and eventually a suspension.
