 "From ‘faking’ separation to corruption: The controversial life of Puja Khedkar’s parents")
Trainee IAS officer Puja Khedkar continues to grab headlines, as the controversy over the authenticity of her claims of disability and OBC status, which led to her appointment to the civil services, refuses to die down.
She is also accused of abusing her position of authority when she worked at the Pune collector’s office.
However, when the issue received more media attention, embarrassing details regarding her parents, Manorama and Dilip Khedkar, a retired state government employee, were also revealed.
Here’s all we know about them.
The investigation
The Centre has directed the Pune police to apprise it of the marital status of the parents of controversial IAS probationer Puja Khedkar amid allegations that she fraudulently availed of the OBC non-creamy layer benefit in the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) exam by claiming that they were separated, an official said.
Talking to news agency PTI, a senior official of the Pune police confirmed that the central government has asked them to apprise it of whether the parents of Puja Khedkar - mother Manorama and father Dilip - were divorced.
“We have been asked to find out and inform the central government about whether Puja Khedkar’s parents were divorced. In a nutshell, it has asked us to verify the actual status of their marriage/divorce,” the official said.
Fake separation, income details
To avail of the Other Backward Classes (OBC) non-creamy layer quota in the UPSC, Khedkar had reportedly claimed that her parents were separated and she was living with her mother. As per the rules, only those whose parents’ income is under Rs 8 lakh per annum fall in the category of OBC non-creamy layer.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsIn a video of her mock interview, Khedkar was asked why her family income has been shown as “zero” when her father was a civil servant, she is seen saying that her parents were separated and she is not in contact with her father.
Her claim is in contrast to the Lok Sabha election affidavits that Dilip and Manorama filed in April of this year, which state that both of her parents are married.
Dilip Khedkar ran on the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) ticket for the Lok Sabha in 2024. He was defeated by Nilesh Dnyandev Lanke of the NCP (SP) in the Ahmednagar Lok Sabha constituency of Maharashtra by a margin of more than six lakh votes.
According to India Today, in 2009, Dilip and Manorama Khedkar filed for divorce in Pune’s family court on the grounds of mutual consent.
On June 25, 2010, the divorce was finalised.
The two were reportedly living together at a home in Pune’s Baner neighbourhood even after their divorce. According to the news channel, Manorama Khedkar was the owner of the property.
The pair attending public occasions together as a married couple has also drawn attention.
Corruption and extortion case against Dilip
Dilip has also been the subject of another controversy following accusations that he was suspended twice while serving in the Maharashtra administration due to charges of extortion and corruption, according to News18.
While working at the Kolhapur regional office in 2018, Dilip is said to have asked local companies for bribes to restore basic services like the water and electricity supply.
The report said that a sawmill and timber merchant filed a formal complaint with the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in response to the allegations.
In February 2020, he was subject to a second suspension by the Maharashtra Civil Services, heightening earlier accusations made against him in March 2019 by Sona Alloys Pvt Ltd, who claimed he was involved in harassment and soliciting bribes.
More grievances from other small business owners emerged, all of them charging him with extortion and other misconduct.
Other cases
Manorama Khedkar is in jail following her arrest last week over the alleged use of a firearm in a dispute with a farmer in a village in the Pune district in June 2023.
A video that went viral on the internet on July 12 showed Manorama, accompanied by private bouncers, brandishing a.25 Webley and Scott pistol on June 5, 2024, during an argument with some farmers over a land ownership issue at Dhadhawali village in Mulshi tehsil. The police then filed a case against Manorama and six other people, including Puja’s father Dilip.
#PujaKhedkar fabricated:
— Adv. Sumit Arora (@LawgicallyLegal) July 13, 2024
- Disability Certificate
- Caste Certificate-Non creamy layer OBC
- Income affidavits?
- & Evaded Medical examinations
While her mother brandishes a pistol & threatens people? Not just Once, but several times.
Entire family involved in the scam? pic.twitter.com/awQf4uJXTA
The Pune court granted Dilip interim protection till July 25 in the case.
The retired Maharashtra Pollution Control Board official is also accused of an undeclared wealth.
He declared wealth of more than Rs 40 crore and income of Rs 49 lakh per year while running as a Vanchit Bahujan Aaghadi (VBA) candidate in the Lok Sabha elections of 2024, according to documents.
The Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau asked for a report regarding his wealth from its Ahmednagar unit.
Puja Khedkar’s training on hold
The UPSC last week took a series of actions, including the registration of a police case, against Puja Khedkar for fraudulently availing attempts in the civil services examination by faking her identity, according to PTI.
The commission has also issued a show cause notice for cancellation of her candidature of the civil services examination-2022 and debarment from future examinations and selections.
Khedkar, a 2023 batch probationary Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, is accused of misusing power and privileges, by demanding perks and facilities she was not entitled to, during her training in the Pune district collectorate. She was also accused of bullying everyone around and of placing a red-blue beacon (indicating a high-ranking official) atop a private Audi (a luxury sedan) car used by her that also had ‘Maharashtra Government’ written on it during her stint.
A criminal case has been registered against her in Delhi last week for “misrepresenting and falsifying facts.” The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has also issued a show-cause notice regarding the cancellation of her candidature for the 2022 examination and is considering barring her from future exams.
Her probation period was put on hold and she was recalled to Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration in Uttarakhand’s Mussoorie.
With inputs from agencies
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