Pune police registers FIR against parents of trainee IAS officer Pooja Khedkar for threatening local farmer

Pune Rural Police have filed an FIR at Paud police station against the parents of trainee IAS officer Pooja Khedkar, Manorama Khedkar, Dilip Khedkar, and five others following a complaint from a local farmer accusing Manorama Khedkar of making threats.

ANI reported, citing Senior Police Inspector, Paud Police Station, that the FIR has been filed under sections 323, 504, and 506 of IPC.

Charges under the Arms Act have also been included, said the police.

Puja Khedkar, from the 2023 batch of IAS officers, faces allegations of misrepresenting herself as an OBC non-creamy layer candidate during her UPSC candidacy. Moreover, she claimed visual and mental disabilities but declined assessments to substantiate these assertions.

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A video showing IAS officer Puja Khedkar's mother threatening a group of men with a gun has gone viral, adding to the woes of the controversial bureaucrat. The incident captured in the video pertains to a land parcel purchased by Puja's father, Dilip Khedkar, a retired Maharashtra government officer, in Dhadwali village, Mulshi tehsil, Pune.

Watch the video below:

Local residents accused the Khedkars of encroaching on neighbouring farmers' land. In the footage, Manorama Khedkar, accompanied by security personnel, engages in a heated exchange with neighbours. She is seen shouting at a man while holding a pistol, which she later conceals in her hand.

"We have taken cognisance of the video that is circulating on social media platforms. Once facts are ascertained, we will start a probe. We will investigate if Manorama Khedkar has a licence for the firearm," a senior Pune Rural police official told PTI.

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In connection with the episode, farmer Kuldeep Pasalkar claimed Manorama Khedkar was forcefully trying to usurp his land.

"She has been threatening other farmers as well. She visited my plot along with some security guards and started threatening us while holding a firearm in her hand," Pasalkar alleged.

According to official sources speaking to PTI, probationary IAS officer Puja Khedkar could be terminated from service if found culpable.

A single-member committee established by the Centre on Thursday will re-evaluate all documents she submitted for her civil services examination candidacy and subsequent selection into the service.

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"The officer may be terminated from the service if found guilty. She may face criminal charges also in case she is found to have misrepresented a fact or done any sort of manipulation in documents relied upon for her selection," a source said.

The single-member probe committee of Manoj Kumar Dwivedi, Additional Secretary in the Department of Personnel and Training, has been asked to submit its report within two weeks, the sources said.

(With inputs from agencies)