PUNE: Controversial and recently dismissed IAS probationary officer Puja Khedkar, who was denied anticipatory bail by a Delhi court on Thursday for charges of cheating and improperly using OBC and disability quota benefits, remains unaccounted for. Media reports speculate that she has fled to Dubai after failing to secure relief from the courts. This speculation is fueled by her switched-off, untraceable cell phone.

Authorities, however, claim she hasn't left the country, as there are no immigration records showing her departure. Investigating agencies are monitoring all major exit points for her, but the fact remains that Khedkar has not been traceable and despite several teams of police searching for they have had little success so far and it can be a possibility that she could try to get out of the country to Nepal with which India shares a soft border. 

Khedkar had sought court protection through her lawyer, citing an "immediate threat of arrest." During the hearing, the judge emphasized the seriousness of the allegations, calling the case "only the tip of the iceberg," and urged the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) to reassess recent recommendations. The judge also advised the Delhi Police to broaden their investigation.

Previously, the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration in Mussoorie issued Khedkar eight memos for misconduct during her training. These mounting allegations increased the pressure for her arrest. Khedkar and her family, including her mother Manorama Khedkar who was arrested for threatening a farmer with a gun, attracted attention after reports surfaced of her demands for a separate office, an official car, and the unauthorized use of a beacon on her private car during her posting in Pune. She was later transferred from Pune to Washim.

Manorama was initially arrested on July 18 in connection with a land dispute case and was sent to police custody for four days, and then the court denied her bail and sent her to judicial custody for another 14 days after which a court in Pune granted bail and she was released on Saturday.