PUNE: Puja Khedkar, a 2023-batch IAS officer, has found herself at the centre of a storm over alleged abuse and misuse of power. It all started when she made privileged demands and perks that are typically reserved for senior officials, not trainee officers including installing a red beacon light on it illegally on a luxury car used by her. 

Even before officially assuming her role as an assistant collector, Khedkar raised eyebrows by demanding VIP privileges. These included an official car with a VIP number plate, accommodation, an exclusive chamber, and even a constable. She was also accused of removing the nameplate of a senior official at the Pune collector’s office when he allowed her to use his ante-chamber as her office.

As per a report submitted by Pune collector Suhas Diwse to the General Administration Department, even before joining duty on June 3, Khedkar repeatedly demanded that she be provided with a separate cabin, car, residential quarters and a peon. She was told that she was not entitled to these facilities while on probation, and accommodation would be provided to her. Diwse in his report to the GAD said it was not appropriate to allow Ms. Khedkar to continue her training in Pune. 

As the controversy began blowing up it came to light about other things like she had allegedly used a non-creamy layer (NCL) certificate (NCL is issued to individuals belonging to Other Backward Classes (OBC) in India, but with a family income below a certain limit typically below Rs. 8 lahks annually) along with Other Backward Community (OBC) and disability certificates that were submitted while appearing for the Union Civil Services Exams conducted by the Public Service Commission (UPSC) and later allegations of misuse of the OBC certificate to secure admission for MBBS using the OBC non-creamy layer quota also surfaced.

According to an India Today TV report sources claimed that she secured admission for MBBS at Pune’s Kashibai Navale Medical College in 2007 under the OBC Nomadic Tribe-3 category, which is reserved for the Vanjari community, to which she belongs. 

Taking cognisance of the matter that has blown up into a major controversy as it relates to the prestigious civil service exams the Centre has established a single-member committee on Thursday “to verify the candidature” of the 2023-batch IAS officer of the Maharashtra cadre. 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.

Pending inquiry the state administration has now assigned he as Assistant Collector at the Washim District Collectorate and she reached Washim to take charge, however when media people asked her about the accusation she chose to stay mum and said that she was not authorised to speak on the matter citing rules. On repeatedly asking to clear her stand on allegations levelled against her she kept on repeating the same line of being not authorised to speak.