A Pune court granted interim protection to Dilip Khedkar, father of trainee IAS officer Puja Khedkar, until July 25th. The protection is in relation to a case alleging threats against a local farmer over a land dispute. Dilip Khedkar is a co-accused in the case, alongside his wife, Manorama Khedkar. Earlier this week, Pune Rural police arrested Manorama Khedkar. The accusations arose after a video surfaced earlier this month, showing Manorama allegedly threatening individuals with a gun during a land dispute at Dhadwali village in Pune’s Mulshi tehsil in 2023.
The Khedkar couple, along with three others, were accused of threatening Pandharinath Pasalkar (65) with a gun over a land dispute in Dhadwali village on June 4, 2023. Following the incident, Paud police in Pune rural filed a case against the Khedkar couple and five others under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including 307 (attempt to murder), 144 (unlawful assembly armed with deadly weapon), 147 (rioting), and 506 (criminal intimidation), along with provisions of the Arms Act. The police registered the First Information Report based on the viral video showing Manorama allegedly threatening individuals with a gun.
Meanwhile, Puja Khedkar, the trainee IAS officer, is facing scrutiny over her claims regarding disability and Other Backward Class (OBC) certificates used during her Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) candidature. There are also concerns about her conduct during her tenure at the Pune collector’s office. Earlier on the same day, the UPSC registered a criminal case against Puja Khedkar, accusing her of faking her identity to fraudulently avail of attempts in the civil services examination beyond eligibility. The UPSC also took steps to debar her from future 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 at the Pune District Collectorate in Maharashtra recently. (With inputs from agencies).
