Puja Khedkar's Mother Tries To Prevent Media, Says, 'I Will Send Everyone Behind Bars'

Pune: Amid allegations against controversial trainee IAS officer Puja Khedkar of misusing benefits under the physical disabilities category and Other Backward Class (OBC) quota to secure a position in the Indian Administrative Services (IAS) surfaced, her mother Manorama allegedly tried to prevent the media present outside her Pune residence from filming.

Amid a flurry of allegations against the 34-year-old trainee, Pune Police officials, on Thursday, visited her residence to investigate the purported misuse of a red beacon light and a VIP number for her Audi car, only to find the gates locked.

'I Will Send Everybody Behind Bars...'

As per a video that is going viral across social media platforms, Khedkar's mother can be seen behind the gate of her residence addressing media persons when the cops arrived. She could be allegedly heard telling the media persons, "I will send everybody behind bars. Everybody step aside."

Watch the video here:

Centre Forms Panel To Look Into Row Involving Puja Khedkar

The Centre constituted a single-member Committee 'to verify the candidature' of Khedkar, amid allegations that she misused the disability and Other Backward Class quotas to secure a position in the service. 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. The committee will submit its report in two weeks, the statement said.

Khedkar Assumes Her New Role As Asst Collector

In the meantime, Khedkar on Thursday assumed her new role as assistant collector at the Washim District Collectorate in the Vidarbha region after being transferred from Pune where she allegedly bullied everyone around and also placed a red beacon on her private Audi car. In a notable shift from her previous practices, Khedkar arrived at her Washim office on Thursday in a modest Bolero car, diverging from the extravagant Audi with red beacon light she had been associated with during her time in Pune.

Khedkar Responds To Allegations Against Her

Despite the mounting claims, Khedkar refrained from addressing the accusations, stating that government regulations prohibited her from commenting on the issue. "I am happy to join duty at the Washim District Collectorate and am looking forward to working here," the probationary officer said. Asked about the allegations against her, Khedkar told reporters, "I am not authorised to speak on the issue. Government rules don't provide (allow) me to speak on this."

Why Was Khedkar Shunted Out To Washim?

Khedkar was shunted out to Washim after Pune district collector Suhas Diwase wrote to state additional chief secretary Nitin Gadre requesting him to consider giving a posting to Khedkar in another district to avoid "administrative complications". Diwase had sought action against Khedkar for her behaviour, including alleged aggressive treatment of junior staff, illegal occupation of the ante-chamber of additional collector Ajay More, and violations pertaining to sporting a red beacon on the Audi and flashing it during the day, among others. Washim District Collector Buveneswari S said, "Probationer Puja Khedkar joined the district collector's office for training purposes as per the order of the Maharashtra State government order. She will be learning with various government departments during her training period." (with PTI inputs)