New Delhi, India

Under-fire IAS probationary officer Puja Khedkar's father Dilip Khedkar has come to her defence amid questions surrounding her selection. Dilip, a retired bureaucrat from Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) claimed his daughter was a victim of conspiracy hatched to target his family. 

Advertisment

Dilip also doubled down on the legitimacy of Puja's alleged fake disability certificate by claiming it was correct. 

“There are many kinds of disabilities. Puja suffers from vision impairment, which is more than 40 per cent. Therefore she fulfils 40 per cent criteria of the disability,” Dilip was quoted as saying by the Hindustan Times.

"Medical experts on a panel had verified her disabilities before issuing the certificate," he added. 

Advertisment

The former 'babu' stated that his daughter also had a "certain category of mental illness which was verified by medical professionals before the disability certificate was issued”.

Also read | Who is Pooja Khedkar? IAS trainee who made VIP demands, transferred

FIR filed against Khedkar's parents

Advertisment

Dilip's statement came after a First Information Report (FIR) was filed against him and his wife, Manorama Khedkar after they were accused of threatening farmers in Maharashtra's Pune with a firearm.

According to reports, the FIR is based on a complaint filed by a farmer who accused Manorama of threatening him with a firearm, alongside five others.

"The FIR has been registered under sections 323, 504, 506 of the Indian Penal Code, with additional charges under the Arms Act," Manoj Yadav, senior police inspector at Paud Police Station in Pune, was quoted as saying by the news agency ANI.

The incident gained public attention after a video went viral. The viral video showed Manorama Khedkar brandishing a gun and engaging in a heated altercation with a group of individuals.

Watch | India budget 2024-25: Calls for simplified tax regime gain momentum

×

Audi confiscated 

A day after the FIR, the Pune police on Sunday (Jul 14) confiscated a private luxury car used by the controversial trainee officer. 

Notably, the Audi car was impounded and brought to Chaturshrangi Police Station after the Pune Regional Transport Office (RTO) had issued a notice to a city-based private company, which is the registered owner of the luxury car that Khedkar used during her posting.

The German car has been barricaded at the traffic division of the police station as the probe gets underway. 

"A notice was issued on Thursday against the unauthorised use of a beacon and name sign on the private sedan Khedkar had been using. The car now has been confiscated, its documents will be checked and we are probing the matter further," a senior police official said.

The controversy surrounding Puja's misuse of power has sparked widespread outrage over the institution of 'civil servants' running the country. It also raises questions over the authority of UPSC - a constitutional body that conducts the recruitment of officers to All India Services. 

(With inputs from agencies)