Mandla v Dowell-Lee [1982] UKHL 7 is a United Kingdom law case on racial discrimination.

It held that Sikhs are to be considered an ethnic group for the purposes of the Race Relations Act 1976.

The boy went to another school, but the father lodged a complaint with the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE), which brought the case.

No matter whether your objection to them is reasonable or unreasonable, you can discriminate against them - without being in breach of the law.’He held that Sikhs were not a racial or ethnic group.

They have a distinct social identity based not simply on group cohesion and solidarity but also on their belief as to their historical antecedents.