IAS Puja Khedkar's father gets protection from arrest in criminal intimidation case

IAS probationer Puja Khedkar talks to media. Pic/PTI

A sessions court in Pune has granted interim protection from arrest till July 25 to Dilip Khedkar, father of controversial probationary IAS officer Puja Khedkar, in a case where he is accused of threatening a person with a gun over a land dispute, reported the PTI.

The Pune Rural Police in Maharashtra had on Thursday arrested Manorama Khedkar, his wife and Puja's mother, in the same case.

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Manorama was remanded in police custody till July 20.

Dilip Khedkar had moved the court seeking pre-arrest ('anticipatory') bail.

According to the PTI, Judge A N Mare granted him "ad-interim protection from arrest" till July 25, the next date of hearing, said a lawyer representing him. If the police arrests him before that, he will have to be released on bail, the lawyer added.

A case has been registered at Paud police station against Dilip and Manorama Khedkar besides five others under Indian Penal Code sections 307 (attempt to murder), 144 (unlawful assembly armed with deadly weapon), 147 (rioting) and 506 (criminal intimidation) and also under the Arms Act, as per the PTI.

The First Information Report was registered after a viral video showed Manorama purportedly threatening some persons with a gun at Dhadwali village in Pune's Mulshi tehsil. The incident had taken place in 2023.

Earlier in the day, the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) said it had lodged a criminal case against Puja Khedkar for faking her identity to fraudulently avail of attempts in the civil services examination beyond eligibility, and taken steps to debar her from future selections.

Engineering firm linked to Manorama Khedkar sealed

Meanwhile, the Pimpri-Chinchwad civic body on Friday sealed an engineering firm linked to the mother of controversial probationary Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Puja Khedkar over unpaid property tax amounting to nearly Rs 2 lakh, municipal officials said, a PTI report stated on Friday.

The junior bureaucrat's mother, Manorama Khedkar, is currently in the custody of Pune police in a criminal case.

The Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) in Pune district sealed the defunct firm -- Thermoverita India Pvt Ltd -- located in the Talawade area over unpaid property dues.

Notably, Puja Khedkar, while applying for a disability certificate at the Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial Hospital (YCM) in the Pimpri-Chinchwad township for selection into civil services under quota, had given the engineering firm's location as her residential address.

"The property tax for 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 for Thermoverita India Pvt Ltd has been pending for the last two years. Additionally, the current year's outstanding is also pending. As their dues were unpaid in 2023, first they (owner) were issued notices and later as a graded response, we first snapped their water connection, as per the PTI.

Since, the dues are unpaid for the last two years, we as a next procedure, sealed the property," said PCMC commissioner Shekhar Singh, accotding to the PTI.

The total outstanding for the last two years was Rs 1.96 lakh and if the current year's dues are added, the pending amount goes up to Rs 2.77 lakh, he said.

Manorama Khedkar was arrested on Thursday by the Pune rural police for allegedly threatening some persons with a gun over a land dispute at Dhadwali village in Mulshi tehsil in 2023.

In more trouble for Puja Khedkar, the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) on Friday took a series of action, including registration of a police case, against the batch probationary IAS officer for fraudulently availing attempts in the civil services examination by faking her identity.

The commission has also issued a show cause notice for cancellation of her candidature of the civil services examination-2022 and debarment from future examinations and selections.

(with PTI inputs)