NEW DELHI: Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha and Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday strongly condemned "persistent caste-based discrimination" in India, citing a shocking case from Odisha where parents have boycotted an Anganwadi centre for three months because the helper-cum-cook is a Dalit woman.
Kharge described how the Anganwadi, meant to support children's physical and cognitive development through nutrition and early education, has been effectively shut down due to caste prejudice.
"Anganwadi is supposed to be a place for the physical and cognitive growth of children, " he said, emphasising that the ongoing boycott deprives young students of their rightful nutrition and hampers their overall development.
He expressed outrage at the parents' discriminatory attitude toward the Dalit woman worker, underscoring that children should not suffer due to adult biases.