Pune: IAS Officer Puja Khedkar Accused of Using Fake Ration Card for Disability Certificate

Pune, 17th July 2024: Allegations have surfaced regarding probationary Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Puja Khedkar. Initially accused of using a fake disability certificate to become a civil servant, she now faces new allegations. According to media reports, Khedkar is accused of using a false address and a fake ration card to obtain the disability certificate.

Khedkar reportedly submitted the address Plot Number 53, Dehu Alandi Road, Talawade as her residence when obtaining the disability certificate at Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial (YCM) Hospital. However, this address houses a now-closed company named Thermoverita Engg Pvt. Ltd., not a residential property.

Documents reveal that fake ration cards were created using the company’s address. Khedkar obtained a Locomotor Disability Certificate using this address. The certificate, issued on 24th August 2022, states she has a 7% disability in the knee.

Further controversy surrounds Khedkar regarding the registration of her Audi car, which is also in the name of Thermoverita Engg Pvt. Ltd. She initially attracted attention for writing ‘Maharashtra Government’ and installing a red beacon on this car. Additionally, the Taxation and Tax Collection Department of the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) reports the company owes Rs 2.7 lakh in dues for the past three years.

Meanwhile, the Pune District Collector has sent a report on Khedkar to the secretariat, and she will not be trained in Washim as planned. The Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA), which trains IAS officers, has suspended her district training and ordered her to report to Bengaluru immediately for further action.

Moreover, Pune’s Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) submitted a detailed report regarding the assets of Dilip Khedkar, Puja Khedkar’s father, to the state headquarters yesterday evening. Dilip Khedkar, who was the Director of the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) until 2020, is accused of amassing unaccounted assets during his tenure. Further action is likely following an investigation into this matter.