Today, Friday, August 9, the Delhi High Court (HC) adjourned the hearing on an anticipatory bail plea filed by former Maharashtra cadre probationary Indian Administrative Services (IAS) officer Puja Khedkar, who allegedly submitted false Other Backward Classes (OBC) and PwBD (Persons with Benchmark Disabilities) certificates and fraudulently availed attempts beyond the permissible limits provided for the Civil Services Examination (CSE) by faking her identity. This was stated in a report by PTI.
A bench of Justice Subramonium Prasad, which was slated to take up the matter for hearing today, Friday, did not assemble and will hear Khedkar's plea on Monday (August 12) now.
In addition, last week, a court in Delhi turned down her anticipatory bail plea and asked the investigating agency to find out if anyone from inside the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) had helped Khedkar.
Widening the scope of the probe, Additional Sessions Judge Devender Kumar Jangala asked the Delhi Police to investigate if other people recommended by the UPSC have availed quota benefits without entitlement.
To recall, on Wednesday, August 7, the UPSC told the Delhi High Court that it would communicate to Khedkar, within two days, on its order cancelling her provisional candidature for CSE-2022.
A bench of Justice Jyoti Singh was hearing a plea filed by the former IAS trainee challenging the validity of a press release issued by the UPSC cancelling her provisional candidature and permanently debarring her from all future exams/selections.
Disposing of Khedkar’s plea, the high court granted her liberty to approach the appropriate judicial forum for remedy.
Besides that, the UPSC, Central government, Maharashtra government, and the police are conducting separate probes against Khedkar, while the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA) in Mussoorie has removed her from field training as a trainee IAS officer in Pune and Washim districts.
The UPSC had said that its Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) "could not detect her number of attempts primarily because she changed not only her name but also her parents’ names".