Kharge Flags Caste Bias At Workplace, Cites Odisha Anganwadi Boycott Over Dalit Cook

New Delhi: Congress president and Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday referred to the three-month boycott of an Anganwadi centre in Odisha’s Kendrapada district following the appointment of a Dalit woman while speaking about caste discrimination at workplaces.

“In the 21st century, when we talk about social development, social reform, and the unity of Hindus, people of a particular community are refusing to let their children eat food cooked by a Dalit woman who is a helper-cum-cook in an anganwadi centre in Odisha. That anganwadi centre has been boycotted for the last three months,” the LoP said during Zero Hour in the Upper House.

He stressed that such caste prejudice not only deprives young children of essential benefits but also undermines the constitutional right to education under Article 21A.

Kharge said workplace caste discrimination is being reported from different parts of the country. “Prompt and timely investigations into such cases could have prevented subsequent occurrences,” he said, citing examples from other states.

No End In Sight

Meanwhile, the efforts of Kendrapada administration to convince villagers of Nuagaon under Rajnagar block to end the boycott of the Anganwadi over appointment of a Dalit cook has failed to yield any result. The villagers skipped a meeting convened on Wednesday to resolve the issue amicably. Sub collector Arun Nayak, Rajnagar tehsildar Jisukrishna Das, district welfare officer (DWO) Arabinda Ray and other officials had visited the village on the direction of Collector Raghuram R Iyer, but only the sarpanch and ward member and two villagers turned up for meeting.

According to sources, the village committee allegedly decided to boycott the centre after Sharmista Sethy, a 20-year-old graduate from the Dalit community, was appointed as helper-cum-cook on November 20, 2025. She was the lone candidate for the post. Not only children, even pregnant and lactating women stopped visiting the facility since then, while allegedly following an age-old custom which bars them from consuming food prepared by members of the Dalit community.

Earlier speaking to the media, Sharmista had described the experience as very painful. “I always wanted to teach children and was very happy to have got this opportunity. I have been personally approaching families and urging them to send their kids to the Anganwadi. Four or five families had started collecting ‘chhatua’ and eggs from the centre, but they were threatened by other villagers and have stopped coming since,” she claimed.

The riverside village of Nuagaon has around 45 families, including seven Dalit households. Ghadimala sarpanch Sailendra Mishra also told the media that the villagers have ignored their appeals to send children to the Anganwadi centre.