Maharashtra cadre IAS officer, Dr. Puja Khedkar, has stirred up a storm in the political and administrative circles of the state due to her transfer following alleged misuse of authority in Pune Collector office. Her OBC and disability certificates are also under scrutiny, with the Centre establishing a single-member committee on Thursday "to verify the candidature" of the 2023-batch IAS officer of the Maharashtra cadre.
In a statement, the Centre said the probe would be conducted by an additional secretary-rank officer to verify the candidature claims and other details of the 2023 batch officer, who has been allotted the Maharashtra cadre.
She has been under intense scrutiny for allegedly manipulating benefits under the physical disabilities category and OBC quota to secure her position in the elite civil service.
Who is IAS Dr Puja Khedkar? What Did She Exactly Do?
Dr. Puja Khedkar is an IAS probationer who is entangled in the misuse of authority in Pune. As per a LinkedIn profile, which now stands deleted, she is an MBBS doctor and also claimed to have worked at Delhi’s Ganga Ram Hospital as an endocrinologist.
Her father, Dilip Khedkar, is a former state government officer. He recently contested the Lok Sabha election from Ahmednagar for the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi, led by Prakash Ambedkar. According to his election affidavit, he has wealth exceeding ₹40 crore.
The officer at the center of the row, however, in a mock interview clip that has gone viral on social media, was asked by the panel why she has shown her father's income as zero, to which she replied that they have separated. She also informed the panel that her father is a retired Maharashtra government servant.
It should be noted that the creamy layer certificate limitation is an annual parental income of ₹8 lakh.
It has been claimed that Khedkar has visited his daughter multiple times at the Pune collectorate and pressured officers.
Meanwhile, a video is circulating on social media in which the IAS officer's mother, Manorama Khedkar, is seen threatening a farmer with a gun.
Her mother, Manorama Khedkar, who is also under scrutiny, is the daughter of Jagganath Rao Budhwant, an IAS officer. She serves as the sarpanch of Bhalgaon village in Pathardi tehsil of Ahmednagar.
She demanded separate cabin, car, residential quarters, and a peon
As per a report submitted by Pune collector Suhas Diwse to the General Administration Department, even before joining duty on June 3, Khedkar repeatedly demanded that she be provided a separate cabin, car, residential quarters, and a peon.
She was told that she was not entitled to these facilities on probation and that accommodation would be provided to her.
Diwse, in his report to the GAD, said it was not appropriate to allow Khedkar to continue her training in Pune.
She was also accused of removing the nameplate of a senior official at the Pune collector's office when he allowed her to use his ante-chamber as her office.
