UPSC Cancels Provisional Candidature Of Controversial IAS Officer Puja Khedkar

The provisional candidature of controversial trainee IAS officer Puja Manorama Dilip Khedkar was cancelled by the Union Public Service Commission in view of the irregularities noticed in her application related to the civil services examination, 2022. Moreover, Khedkar is debarred from appearing at any examination conducted by UPSC.

According to the investigations, Khedkar, who had secured an all-India rank of 821 in the UPSC examinations, had misused her powers to avail herself of more attempts at the civil services examination, which was actually barred due to identity manipulation. This included changing her name, parents’ names, photograph, signature, email ID, mobile number, and address to bypass examination rules.

Thereafter, the UPSC filed an FIR against her with Delhi police. The UPSC said that Khedkar had produced fake documents to claim physical disability and issued her a show-cause notice.

The decision comes after the Maharashtra government struck her off the District Training Programme and called her back to the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, Mussoorie. Her training has been suspended by the institution.

A Delhi court will hear Khedkar’s anticipatory bail plea today. The hearing was adjourned from Tuesday after the public prosecutor sought more time. Meanwhile, Khedkar’s mother Manorama Khedkar was remanded in 14-day judicial custody by a Pune court recently in connection with a land dispute case for allegedly threatening people with a gun.