Deadline over, Puja Khedkar fails to report at IAS training academy
NEW DELHI, JULY 24 : Controversial probationary IAS officer Puja Khedkar, accused of submitting fake disability and caste certificates to get selected, failed to report to the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA) in Mussoorie by her scheduled deadline on Tuesday.
As the controversy around her selection broke out, Khedkar was recalled to the academy and her training programme was put on hold. She was asked to report by July 23. The LBSNAA in Mussoorie is a training institution for civil servants.
On July 16, Maharashtra Additional Chief Secretary Nitin Gadre wrote to Puja Khedkar, stating that her training period with the government had been terminated. Sources said Puja Khedkar has neither reported to the academy nor replied to the letter.
“It has been decided that district training of Puja Khedkar, IAS 2023 batch, be kept on hold, and she be immediately recalled to the Academy for further necessary action. The state government is requested to relieve the probationer immediately and advise her to join the academy at the earliest, not later than July 23 under any circumstances,” the letter by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) to the Maharashtra government said.
Khedkar, a 2023-batch trainee IAS officer, is facing allegations of misusing the Other Backward Classes (OBC) and Persons With Benchmark Disabilities (PwBD) quotas for selection.
She has also been booked by the Delhi Police’s Crime Branch for allegedly submitting false information to UPSC about her identity to avail more attempts at the civil service exams than she is eligible for.
The Centre has also formed a single-member committee to examine all documents submitted by Khedkar.
Khedkar came under the spotlight earlier this month after she was transferred from Pune to Washim district over complaints of misconduct, including the use of a private car with a beacon light, during her probation period. She also sought a separate office, an official vehicle, and staff — privileges that she is not entitled to as a probationer.
-PTI
