Police Worker's Race Discrimination Case Dismissed Over KKK Allegations
A civilian police worker who claimed her colleagues were members of the Ku Klux Klan has lost her race discrimination case at an employment tribunal. Neelam Puri, 59, from an Indian-Asian background, sued the Scottish Police Authority after making what the tribunal described as 'ludicrous' suggestions about white supremacist infiltration within the force.
The KKK Conversation That Sparked Concerns
Mrs Puri, who worked as a Public Enquiry Support Assistant at Marischal College police station in Aberdeen from October 2022, raised concerns after overhearing colleagues discussing how 'the KKK had Scottish roots'. She told managers this conversation made her feel 'unsafe' and claimed she could not 'rule out' that co-workers were involved with the group and were 'targeting' her.
While managers agreed the conversation was inappropriate for the workplace, the tribunal heard that 'no harm was intended by his topic of conversation'. The colleague involved, Arthur Martin, maintained the discussion was harmless, though another manager did provide 'suitable advice regarding this' inappropriate workplace talk.
Broader Workplace Tensions and Social Exclusion
The tribunal revealed deeper workplace conflicts beyond the KKK allegations. Mrs Puri had a strained relationship with fellow Public Enquiry Support Assistants, believing they were deliberately not training her properly and excluding her from a social media group. Investigation confirmed other staff had exchanged WhatsApp messages 'highly critical' of Mrs Puri in a group from which she was excluded.
While a disciplinary investigation into that group continues, the tribunal was told no mention was made of her 'race, ethnic origin or nationality' in those messages. In August 2023, colleague Clare Fyfe expressed being 'visibly upset and concerned at working with [Mrs Puri]' during meetings with line managers.
Tribunal's Assessment of the KKK Claims
Employment Judge Kemp addressed the KKK allegations directly, noting Mrs Puri maintained under cross-examination that 'several members of Police Scotland were members of KKK and were targeting her' despite suggestions this position was 'ludicrous'. The tribunal found 'there was not any evidence to support such an allegation' and that Mrs Puri could not identify which police members she believed were KKK participants.
The judge further stated: 'When asked to explain the threat to safety she said that she was right to assume that certain members of Police Scotland were racist.' While acknowledging that technically she couldn't 'rule out' colleagues were KKK members 'in theory', the tribunal determined this was not 'reasonable to infer from circumstances'.
Additional Claims and Unrelated Compensation
Mrs Puri's workplace difficulties continued when she transferred to Stonehaven police station in September 2023. There she complained about shift pattern difficulties, telling a manager that having flexible shifts represented 'white privilege' without elaborating on how this was the case.
After going off sick in April 2024 and resigning in July 2025, all her race discrimination and harassment claims were dismissed. However, she is due to receive £2,293 in compensation for an unrelated reasonable adjustments claim related to her disability—the only successful element of her tribunal action.
The comprehensive dismissal of her race discrimination case highlights the tribunal's finding that while workplace conversations about the KKK were inappropriate, there was no substantiated evidence of racist targeting or KKK membership among police colleagues.
