Senior Congress leader and former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Saturday launched a sharp attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over an alleged purification ritual conducted in Haldwani after Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge addressed a rally there. Describing the incident as deeply serious, Gehlot said the episode had caused immense pain to the entire Dalit community and reflected a broader pattern of discrimination under the ruling dispensation.
Speaking to ANI, Gehlot drew a pointed parallel between the treatment meted out to the country's principal Opposition leader and the everyday reality faced by Dalits across India. "This is a serious incident. If this can happen to the Congress president, just imagine what must be happening to the Dalit community across the entire nation. Under their rule, this negligence has only increased," he said, taking direct aim at the BJP-led central government.
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The controversy stems from reports that a purification ceremony — a practice traditionally associated with attempts to 'cleanse' spaces deemed ritually impure by upper-caste groups — was carried out at a venue in Haldwani shortly after Kharge had held a public event there. The incident has quickly become a flashpoint in national political discourse, with Opposition leaders framing it as evidence of entrenched caste prejudice and the ruling BJP facing uncomfortable questions about its handling of Dalit-related issues.
Kharge, who is himself a Dalit leader and one of the most prominent Scheduled Caste figures in Indian politics, currently serves as the president of the Indian National Congress. The alleged incident in Haldwani — a town in Uttarakhand's Nainital district that has frequently been at the centre of communal and demographic controversies — adds to a string of similar confrontations that Opposition parties have sought to spotlight during the BJP's tenure.
The BJP has yet to publicly address the specific allegations levelled by Gehlot in the latest remarks. The episode comes amid heightened political activity and continued tensions over caste-related incidents in several states, with the Congress expected to amplify the issue as part of its broader campaign highlighting what it calls to the marginalisation of Dalits and other marginalised communities.
