'Proving Me Guilty By Media Trial': IAS Officer Puja Khedkar Lashes Out Amid Fake Disability, OBC Certificate Probe
Date
7/16/2024 10:32:19 PM
(MENAFN- Live Mint) IAS trainee officer Puja Khedkar asserted on Monday that truth will prevail as she prepares to present her case to the central committee investigating allegations of misusing disability provisions and Other Backward Class (OBC) quotas to secure her civil service position.
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Responding to reporters, Puja Khedkar criticized what she perceived as a prejudicial media trial, vehemently denying accusations of fraudulent means in her exam process. "Our Indian Constitution is based on the fact 'Innocent until proven guilty' so proving me guilty by media trial is wrong..." Puja Khedkar told reporters in Washim.
The 34-year-old officer faces claims of misrepresentation under physical disabilities and OBC categories in her civil services application.
“I will testify before the committee. I think whatever decision the committee will take should be acceptable to all,” Khedkar told reporters in Washim.
Puja Khedkar recently sparked controversy when she reportedly requested a separate cabin and staff during her posting in Pune, followed by an abrupt transfer to Washim district. Subsequently, she faced additional allegations of securing her IAS position by applying under the Other Backward Class (OBC) category with an annual income of less than ₹8 lakh, as well as under the visually impaired category, while submitting a certificate for mental illness.
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Her father and former Maharashtra government employee Dilip Khedkar, who contested the Lok Sabha elections and had declared property worth ₹40 crore in his poll affidavit, told a Marathi news channel on Sunday that she indeed belongs to the non-creamy layer.
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Further, no mental illness physcal disability was submitted by her during Puja Khedkar's MBBS stint in a Pune college, the hospital's director confirmed on Monday.
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