The Delhi High Court (HC) deferred the anticipatory bail hearing of the former probationary officer of the Indian Administrative Services (IAS) Dr Puja Khedkar, yet again.
The case, which was listed to be heard yesterday, November 14, will now be heard on November 28, informed the Delhi High Court order.
“The Hon’ble Judge is not holding court today. List on 28th November, 2024 (.sic),” the order read.
To recall, Puja Khedkar, who belonged to the 2023 batch of the IAS, stands accused of misrepresenting personal information in her application to avail benefits of affirmative action.
These include falsifying her family’s income records to avoid the creamy layer of the Other Backwards Classes category, claiming to have a disability, producing a fake questionable disability certificate and failing to appear for the mandatory medical examination to avail disability quotas, and claiming that her parents were separated, reports The New Indian Express.
These facts came to the fore after she attempted to occupy the office of the District Collector of Pune, where she was posted, and demanded an official vehicle with a VIP number plate, accommodation, an official chamber with adequate staff, and an armed constable. She also had a “Government of Maharashtra” sticker and a red-and-blue beacon on her private vehicle, an Audi, even before she began her probation.
It was also revealed that she attempted the Union Public Service Commission Civil Services Examination (UPSC - CSE) 12 times — way past the maximum number of attempts a candidate can take.
Responding to these revelations, the UPSC discharged Khedkar from service on September 6. In addition, the commission filed a police complaint against her for defrauding not only the UPSC but the entire nation. The Prime Minister’s Office also ordered a probe into the affair.
