Last Updated on 31/07/2024 by wccexam Desk
If anyone’s name has been surrounded by controversies the fastest after becoming an IAS, then it is Maharashtra cadre IAS officer Pooja Khedkar. Whether it is the allegation of age fraud, caste scam or the matter of fake disability certificate, Pooja is surrounded from all sides. Now amidst this siege, DoPT i.e. Department of Personnel and Training has served her a show cause notice and asked about the allegations against her. She has to answer this by August 2.
It depends on Pooja Khedkar’s reply whether she will be able to work as an IAS in future or her services will be terminated forever. DoPT i.e. Department of Personnel and Training comes directly under the Prime Minister. In this notice issued by DoPT on July 26, she has been asked to either appear in person and present her side. In this, Pooja also has an option that if she wants, she can give a written reply to the Department of Personnel and Training.
With this notice, DoPT has made it clear that if Pooja does not respond to it, DoPT will take further action and if sources from the department are to be believed, this action can be anything from taking away Pooja’s IAS rank to terminating her. Citing the report of the one-member investigation committee of UPSC, Delhi Police Crime Branch has already registered a criminal case against Pooja Khedkar. It includes charges under sections of forgery, fraud and IT Act.
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Let us find out what are the serious allegations against Pooja Khedkar that have surrounded her from all sides…
Accusation No. 1: Fraud in the name of age
Occupying her senior’s room and trying to show off by putting red-blue lights on her private car proved so costly for Pooja Khedkar that UPSC started an investigation against her. For this, a one-member committee was formed. The biggest scam that this committee exposed in Pooja’s becoming an IAS officer was the age fraud. If the UPSC report is to be believed, Pooja appeared for the UPSC exam more times than the maximum limit allowed under the UPSC rules for selection. She took advantage of it.
The investigation revealed that he had fraudulently taken advantage of the limit of attempts beyond the permissible limit under the exam rules by creating a fake identity by changing his name, his father’s and mother’s name, his photograph/signature, his email ID, mobile number and address. In fact, candidates under different categories get different chances to appear in the UPSC exam. For example, any candidate of the general category can appear for the UPSC exam a total of six times before the age of 32.
Under the OBC category, one is allowed to appear for the exam a total of 9 times till the age of 35. Whereas under the SC ST quota, one can appear for the UPSC exam till the age of 37. It is clear from this statement of UPSC that Pooja Khedkar appeared for the exam more than the prescribed limit to clear the exam. For this, every time she used a new name and a new identity.
Accusation No. 2: Changing even the name of the parents
Now when age-related fraud had to be done, caste also had to be changed and to change caste, Pooja Khedkar even changed her parents’ names. UPSC has said in its investigation report that Pooja Khedkar changed her name, her father’s and mother’s name, her photo, signature, her email ID, mobile number and address and appeared for UPSC exam more times than the prescribed limit.
Accusation No. 3: Creamy life, benefit of non-creamy layer
Pooja Khedkar passed the UPSC exam from the OBC non-creamy layer quota, while she herself has property worth around 17 to 20 crores in her name. She also earns lakhs of rupees as rent from this. Now the criteria for non-creamy layer students appearing for UPSC exam is that their income should be less than 8 lakhs per annum. Actually, in the recently held Lok Sabha elections, Pooja’s father Dilip Khedkar also jumped into the election, but he lost the election, but his property details submitted to the Election Commission have now become a burden on him as well as his IAS daughter. Since in the property details, apart from himself, he had also given information about his wife and daughter, it was revealed that the entire family is half a billionaire. That means Pooja does not come from the non-creamy layer.
Accusation No.4: Report of knee disability is also false?
One of the allegations against Pooja Khedkar is that she took advantage in the IAS exam by falsely declaring herself as disabled. Actually, Pune’s Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial Hospital had declared Pooja as 7 percent disabled. It was said that she had locomotor disability in her left knee. But the report of the Physiotherapy Department of the same hospital says that Pooja Khedkar has no disability at all. That means now the hospital administration itself is under the scanner regarding Pooja’s disability certificate.
Accusation No. 5: An illusion or a fraud?
As if these scams and allegations till now were not enough, it became clear in the UPSC investigation that Pooja had claimed to have mental problems and weak eyesight to pass the UPSC exam through fraudulent means. Pooja had given a certificate for this in UPSC. According to this medical certificate, she has mental problems and weak eyesight. Her vision is fading. Regarding the mental problem, she said that she is not able to remember things. UPSC has a handicapped quota for such students.
Here, Pooja had many weapons. There was the weapon of OBC non-creamy layer and there was also the attack of disability. On the strength of these two weapons, she cleared the UPSC exam and became an IAS in 2022 with an all India rank of 821. However, if the total marks that Pooja got in the written and interview combined were the same as those obtained by a general category student, then there was no question that she would have been able to pass this exam.
According to the rules, before posting, UPSC asked Pooja for all the proofs of disability. For this, UPSC decided to get Pooja examined in AIIMS. UPSC only accepts the reports of government hospitals. Through this report, UPSC wanted to confirm that Pooja is really mentally ill and has weak eyesight. For Pooja’s medical test, UPSC took appointments with doctors in AIIMS a total of six times. But you will be surprised to know that Pooja kept avoiding the test every time by making excuses. This also went against Pooja in UPSC’s investigation.