“You Got This Job for Being Dalit” — NFI Officials Booked for Casteist Abuse and Workplace Exploitation in Odisha

Posted On February 16, 2025

Bhubaneswar- The Nayapalli Police Station in Bhubaneswar has registered a First Information Report (FIR) against senior officials of the National Foundation for India (NFI), including Ipsa Pratibimbata Sarangi and Biraj Patnaik, under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

The complaint, filed by Madhusudan Sethi, a Scheduled Caste (Dhoba) community member and former Programme Officer at NFI’s Bhubaneswar office, alleges severe caste-based discrimination, workplace harassment, verbal abuse, financial exploitation, and threats of false legal cases.

According to the complaint, Sethi was appointed as a Programme Officer at NFI on October 1, 2024, after a rigorous four-stage interview process, where he emerged as the most suitable candidate among 380 applicants. However, within days of joining, he was allegedly subjected to caste-based discrimination and mistreatment by senior officials, particularly Ipsa Pratibimbata Sarangi and Biraj Patnaik. The FIR details instances of workplace untouchability, financial exploitation, and coercion to misuse his Scheduled Caste identity for fundraising purposes.

During a financial training session on Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) compliance in Delhi from October 7-9, 2024, Sethi was allegedly summoned into a private meeting where both Sarangi and Patnaik pressured him to use his SC identity to attract donors.

Sarangi allegedly remarked in Odia: “You got this job based on your Dhoba caste identity; what other skills do you have besides serving us?” This, according to the complaint, was the beginning of a series of humiliating experiences that Sethi endured at the workplace.

The complainant alleged that the accused destroyed his Gautam Buddha statue.

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Forced to Perform Personal Errands and Financial Exploitation

The FIR further states that Sarangi forced Sethi to carry her personal belongings, including household items such as door curtains, during official travel. Over the next four months, he was allegedly compelled to pay for her hotel meals and cover office expenses from his own pocket without reimbursement, amounting to financial exploitation.

Additionally, during an entitlement training session at Tampara Gopalpur Resort on October 15, 2024, Sarangi reportedly threatened to exploit Sethi’s caste identity for national and international funding proposals. She allegedly cited the case of Samira Mallick, another former employee, claiming she had manipulated facts to frame him and remove him from his position.

When Sethi resisted, Sarangi reportedly barred him from using the resort’s swimming pool, saying, “People from the Dhoba caste don’t deserve to bathe in a swimming pool; they should be washing our household clothes in a pond instead.” He was allowed access only after he threatened to call the police.

A Wooden Constitution House, featuring Dr. Ambedkar’s picture was allegedly discarded in the dustbin by the accused.

The complaint details further harassment, including an incident on November 8, 2024, where Sarangi allegedly misused her authority to compel Sethi to use his personal AIIMS ID for her children’s speech therapy sessions during office hours. When he refused, she reportedly retaliated by assigning him fieldwork on public holidays, including November 15, which marks Guru Nanak Jayanti and Birsa Munda Jayanti. When Sethi protested, Sarangi allegedly insulted Birsa Munda by calling him a “terrorist” and refused to acknowledge Sikhism as a separate religion from Hinduism, further hurting his religious sentiments.

On November 20, Sarangi allegedly pressured Sethi again to use his caste identity for fundraising and also sought his help with her children’s school admissions. Upon his refusal, she reportedly humiliated him and later threatened him with false legal action.

According to the FIR, she openly stated that she could orchestrate a false PoSH (Prevention of Sexual Harassment) case and invoke IPC Sections 354 and 509 against him with the backing of their partner organizations. Sarangi allegedly boasted about controlling these partner organizations through financial influence and gifts.

The FIR also highlights that despite the Bhubaneswar office being operational for over a year, Sarangi deliberately refrained from purchasing basic office infrastructure such as Wi-Fi, chairs, and filing cabinets, forcing Sethi to work in the kitchen. This, he claims, was an intentional act to humiliate and isolate him. Moreover, she allegedly made casteist remarks against him, such as, “A beggar Dhoba caste man arrives at the office riding a Bullet; he needs to be put in his place soon.”

When Sethi raised these concerns with Biraj Patnaik on November 23, he claims his grievances were dismissed outright. He states that Patnaik ignored his complaint for 40 days and, when he finally granted a meeting, he cut it short to just 10 minutes, stating that Sethi was only accountable to Sarangi.

“Sarangi frequently assigned me personal errands and even forced me to clean the office and latrine—an attempt to demean me as a manual scavenger. Over the past four months, she repeatedly made derogatory remarks about my role models during lunch and break times. She questioned Savitribai Phule’s feminism, arguing that addressing both caste and gender was inappropriate. She glorified Brahmin supremacy and insulted my inspirations, including Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, falsely claiming that he did not write the Indian Constitution and collaborated with the British during the independence struggle. Furthermore, she disparaged my lord, Gautam Buddha, asserting that he was not a Mahatma but merely someone who abandoned his family responsibilities”, Madhusudan told The Mooknayak.

He continued, “On January 24, Sarangi summoned me to the office for a discussion with Biraj Patnaik, scheduled for January 25 at 1:00 PM (a weekend). Upon my arrival, I was shocked to discover that the shelves in my chamber had been accessed without my consent. My idol of Lord Gautam Buddha had been destroyed, with its fragments hidden in a cupboard and the dustbin. Additionally, my inspiration, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s idol, had been displaced and placed on top of a freezer containing sanitary pads. Sarangi, who regularly stored non-vegetarian items in that fridge, intentionally placed Ambedkar’s statue there to demean my role models.”

Sethi filed an official complaint under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, leading to the registration of an FIR at Nayapalli Police Station.

The National Foundation for India (NFI) has not yet issued an official statement in response to the allegations. The Mooknayak attempted twice to reach out to Ipsa Pratibimbata Sarangi and Biraj Patnaik via emails for their comments; however, no response has been received.

Courtesy: The Mooknayak

Note: This news is originally published on https://en.themooknayak.com and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights.