Controversial trainee IAS officer Pooja Khedkar and her family are currently the talk of the town. Pooja Dilip Khedkar, an MBBS graduate, is a 2023 batch IAS officer. But her selection as an IAS officer has created a controversy. Apart from this, complaints have also been lodged with the police regarding the arm twisting by Pooja Khedkar’s mother and father. Pooja, a doctor-turned-IAS aspirant from Maharashtra’s Ahmednagar district, duped the government to become an IAS officer and misused powers despite being a trainee. A fake certificate of disability when there is no disability, a non creamy layer certificate obtained by declaring an income of Rs eight lakh when having assets and income of crores of rupees and more importantly her selection despite not being able to answer questions in the interview are now being discussed.
At the interview, Pooja was asked two questions related to Maharashtra. One of the issues was the removal of the uterus of women which took place in Beed district. But Pooja did not know about the incident. Also, it is now revealed that she had given false information that her parents were separated. Pooja turned arrogant after joining as an IAS officer in Pune. She started making unreasonable demands. She demanded a separate cabin. Her father threatened the tehsildar for some desired facilities. The ante chamber was grabbed over in the absence of an Additional Collector, without taking any permission. In fact, she was given a separate room on the fourth floor of the Pune Collectorate. But she rejected that room as there was no attached washroom. After that, along with her father Dilip Khedkar, she inspected the collector’s office. They identified a VIP hall with an attached bathroom next to the mining branch. She settled herself in this office. She demanded to replace the electric fittings at that place. But after being told that it was not possible, Pooja’s father threatened the tehsildar of the general branch. The threat was that the officer will not be allowed to reach the Additional Collectorate till the end of his government service. The officer was also asked to arrange for seating space before ‘Khedkar madam’ took charge. Pooja also messaged the Collector and Deputy Collector on WhatsApp about the expected facilities. But she was told that trainee officers do not get these facilities. It was explained that only accommodation would be arranged.
On June 13, 2024, Pooja again came to the collector’s office with her father and inspected the place. Finally arrangements were made to sit in the ante chamber of the Additional Collector. From June 18 to 20, the Additional Collector of Pune was at the Mantralaya for government work. During this period, Pooja created havoc. She removed all the furniture from the additional collector’s ante chamber. After that, a board with her name was installed at that place. She then demanded for a letterhead, visiting card and a rubber stamp. On her private car, she installed the Maharashtra government emblem and also an amber light on top. Then many officials of the collector office filed written complaints with the collector about Pooja. Later, Collector Suhas Diwase lodged a complaint with the Chief Secretary.
After Pooja’s deeds came into the limelight, her other cases started to surface. She had submitted three affidavits to the UPSC. In the first affidavit, she stated that she was ‘impaired’. Another affidavit showed an eye problem. In the third affidavit, the OBC non-creamy layer certificate was attached. She was called for a medical test six times before joining. But she did not appear for the test. Then the question arises, how was she selected? While the OBC non-creamy layer certificate for IAS was submitted by Pooja, however, her father Dilip contested from the Ahmednagar Lok Sabha constituency. In that election affidavit, he had said that he has assets of Rs 40 crore. Also, Pooja has an immovable property worth Rs 22 crore. So, how did she get a non-creamy layer certificate? This is the big question.
Pooja’s family owns 110 acres of land, seven apartments and six shops of 1 lakh square feet each. She also owns a luxurious bungalow in Pune’s Baner area, and has a total of five four-wheelers. How she managed to get the OBC certificate stating that her income is below Rs 8 lakh is a mystery. Despite her misdeeds being exposed, Pooja has not yet been prosecuted. The police have seized the private Audi car on which Pooja had embossed Maharashtra Government logo with a red beacon on it. Police officials reached there to search Pooja’s Baner Road bungalow, but nothing was found there. Most importantly, when will action be taken against the officials who facilitated Pooja to become an IAS officer by accepting the fake certificates she submitted, and also by giving her good marks at the interview even though she could not answer the questions?
It is the dream of many students to clear UPSC and become an administrative officer. For that, they study day and night and if they don’t pass in one attempt, they keep trying several times. With this example of Pooja Khedkar now in the limelight for wrong reasons, it is feared that students will lose faith in the UPSC.