IAS Officer Pooja Khedkar Faces Termination and Criminal Charges Over Alleged False Disability and Caste Claims

Probationary IAS officer Puja Khedkar has come under intense scrutiny for the authenticity of her disability and OBC status claims, crucial for her entry into the civil services. A solitary investigative panel set up by the Centre is currently delving into the matter, with potentially dire repercussions awaiting Khedkar if found guilty of misrepresentation or suppression of facts.

The committee, spearheaded by Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) additional secretary Manoj Dwivedi, is tasked with scrutinizing the process through which Khedkar obtained documents supporting her disability and OBC status.

Key focal points include verifying if adequate vetting was carried out by the issuing authorities and probing into her failure to undergo necessary medical evaluations at AIIMS Delhi to substantiate her disability despite being classified as ‘Persons with Benchmark Disabilities (PwBD)’ for her IAS appointment.

Sources from within the government have hinted that the panel will furnish its findings to the DoPT, which will subsequently relay the report along with recommendations to the Maharashtra government, in light of Khedkar’s allocation to the Maharashtra cadre. If culpable of forging her OBC and disability credentials, Khedkar could face termination by the state government and potential criminal charges for forgery and deception.

To ascertain the veracity of Khedkar’s OBC status, the DoPT panel is contemplating involving the social justice ministry. Despite her assertions of belonging to an economically marginalized section, discrepancies emerged when her father, a former bureaucrat and recent Lok Sabha election candidate, divulged assets surpassing Rs 40 crore, including properties valued in crores registered under Khedkar’s name.

Furthermore, the panel intends to collaborate with experts from AIIMS Delhi to assess if the visual and mental impairments claimed by Khedkar meet the stipulated criteria for government employment, as reported by Times of India.

A senior government official remarked that such instances are not isolated, highlighting cases where aspirants make inaccurate disability assertions to secure positions in the PwBD category annually. These individuals typically circumvent the mandatory AIIMS medical examination and challenge the process in the Central Administrative Tribunal, only to be unsuccessful in their pursuit for appointment post failing the test, the TOI detailed.