Centre dismisses Puja Khedkar from Administrative Service of India with immediate effect

The central government dismissed Puja Khedkar from the Indian Administrative Service with immediate effect on Friday. The development comes a little over a month after the former probationary officer’s temporary candidature was cancelled by the Union Public Service Commission. Khedkar has been accused of cheating and using a forged certificate to avail the disability allowance quota and secure selection.

Khedkar was dismissed with immediate effect under Rule 12 of the IAS Guidelines (Probationary Period). Under this rule, the Central Government can dismiss probationers from service if they “fail to pass the re-examination” or “if the Central Government is satisfied that the probationer was not eligible for recruitment to the Service or is not fit to be a member of the Service”. The UPSC cancelled her candidature on July 31 and disqualified her from future examinations.

The former IAS officer has denied these allegations and recently emphasised that the UPSC has no power to reject her candidature.

“I am ready to undergo medical examination. First they say I have changed my name. Now they say disability is questionable. I am ready to report to AIIMS,” a senior lawyer appearing for Khedkar told the Delhi High Court this week.

The former IPS officer was serving in her home state of Maharashtra earlier this year when she came under fire for repeatedly demanding a separate cabin, car, living quarters and a peon. The Pune police had also launched an investigation in July into her unauthorised use of a red and blue signal light and the words “Maharashtra Government” written on a private car. She was eventually transferred to the Washim district office amid mounting scrutiny of her documents.

In mid-July, the central government set up a one-man commission to investigate the controversial official’s “claims of candidacy and other details.”

Khedkar’s mother Manorama is currently in jail in connection with a criminal intimidation case, having been arrested by the Pune rural police for threatening a person with a gun in 2023 over a land dispute. Her father Dilip, a retired government official, is also an accused in the case.

(With agency guidance)