Controversial trainee IAS officer Puja Khedkar has chosen not to comment directly on the allegations against her but stated she would address the matter before the committee formed by the government to investigate her conduct and selection process.
Khedkar, who was recently transferred from Pune to Washim due to her inappropriate demands, acknowledged the committee's formation through media reports. "If a committee is formed, I will present my side before the committee. I came to know from the media that a committee has been formed. So we should respect it. I will follow the process," she remarked in her first public statement since the controversy emerged last week.
An additional secretary in the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) has been tasked with investigating the matter and is expected to submit a report within two weeks.
The panel was constituted amid allegations that Khedkar had availed both Other Backward Class (OBC) benefits and disability concessions to secure her position in the Indian Administrative Service (IAS). A 2023-batch IAS officer of the Maharashtra cadre, Khedkar claimed to be visually impaired in her affidavit to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).
Khedkar reportedly missed six medical tests to verify her disability in 2022 but later provided an MRI report from an external medical center, which was accepted in 2023 after an eight-month delay.
She previously stirred controversy by requesting special privileges from the Pune Collector's office that were not permissible for her position. Additionally, she used her private Audi car with a red-blue beacon light, a VIP number plate, and a 'Maharashtra government' board.
Khedkar will serve the remainder of her probationary period as a supernumerary assistant collector in Washim.
