Puja Khedkar's Mother In Fresh Trouble: Manorama Khedkar Booked After Abducted Truck Driver Found In Home

(MENAFN- Live Mint) A case has been filed against former IAS probationer Puja Khedkar's mother, Manorama Khedkar, for allegedly obstructing police when they attempted to enter her house on Sunday to locate a driver who was reportedly abducted by two individuals in an SUV following a road rage incident in Navi Mumbai, PTI reported. The driver was rescued from their Pune home, the police said.

The alleged abduction occurred on Saturday evening on Mulund-Airoli Road in Navi Mumbai, near Mumbai, when 22-year-old Prahlad Kumar was driving his concrete mixer truck, police said. According to a Rabale police officer, Kumar's truck brushed against an SUV, leading to an argument between him and two individuals inside the vehicle. The SUV occupants then forcibly took Kumar with them under the pretense of taking him to a police station and fled the scene, the officer added.

How did police get to know about driver's whereabouts?

After the truck owner filed a complaint, Rabale Police registered a kidnapping case under Section 137(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS ) against two unidentified suspects on Sunday. The police later tracked the SUV to Pune. Based on technical evidence, Navi Mumbai police confirmed that Kumar had been taken to Pune , prompting a team to be dispatched there on Sunday, the official said.

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According to a report by PTI, Pune's Chatushrungi police station's senior inspector Uttam Bhajanawale stated, "A team from Rabale police station had come in connection with the case of kidnapping of a truck driver, who was traced to Manorama Khedkar's bungalow in Pune. When the police team reached her bungalow for the investigation, she did not cooperate with them and allegedly obstructed them from discharging their duties.”

The official stated,“We traced the vehicle and the victim to a bungalow belonging to Puja Khedkar.”

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Meanwhile, the Navi Mumbai police have also served a notice to Manorama Khedkar, summoning her for questioning.

"Further investigation is underway to identify the kidnappers and their motive," the police mentioned.

Puja Khedkar has been accused of providing false information in her 2022 UPSC civil services exam application to claim reservation benefits. However, she has denied all the accusations.

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