Illinois: An Indian-American family in Oak Brook, Illinois filed a $50 million federal lawsuit against Butler Elementary District 53 over allegations of cheating in a geography bee. The lawsuit was filed in the US District Court Northern District of Illinois by Rahul Julka, on behalf of his two sons. His wife Komal claimed it isn't about the money, but about her sons, students in the district, who have been subjected to cruel and unusual punishment related to allegations of cheating.
“It really isn't about the money, but if we filed the suit for $10, nobody would pay attention. We want people to know what's going on here,” she said. She said the family is doing all the work in the lawsuit. The incident occurred last year when the school district alleged that the Julkas intentionally obtained test questions in advance of the 2016 National Geographic Bee. Following which, Rahul, a surgeon in DuPage County, filed a civil complaint against the Board of Education of District 53 last June.
Sanctions were led against the family, following the district investigation, with the 9 and 11 year old boys banned from competitions within the district. Komal was also accused to have registered as a fraudulent home school provider, and emails allegedly showing she paid for the questions with her credit card after creating a school name and address. All the claims have been denied by the family. Komal said she and her husband believed the federal lawsuit was necessary because last year's lawsuit doesn't allow them an opportunity to tell their entire story.
