Puja Khedkar’s Father Dilip Khedkar: An Open Inquiry
Pune Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has initiated an investigation into the unaccounted wealth of probationary IAS officer Puja Khedkar. A complaint against her father Dilip Khedkar led to this current probe by Pune ACB.
He is in the center of controversy after his daughter is said to have requested a separate office and car prior to being transferred to Washim. He denies all accusations, and claims she is being harassed without her own fault.
Dilip Khedkar’s blind faith
Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in Pune has initiated an open inquiry against Dilip Khedkar, father of probationary IAS officer Puja Khedkar, over allegations that his family owns excessive assets. Sources claimed evidence to prove their illegal wealth accumulation by the Khedkars; Dilip retired as director of Maharashtra Pollution Control Board in 2020 and is estimated to be worth in excess of 40 crores.
Puja Khedkar and her demands for special privileges were called into question following her selection as an IAS officer by the Central Government and transferred to Washington for training purposes. A committee has also been set up to investigate allegations that she misappropriated power or misused Other Backward Classes (OBC) quota.
Puja Khedkar’s father has spoken out in defense of her actions and denied all allegations of corruption against his daughter, asserting that her disability certificates were legitimate; as she suffers from 40% visual impairment she fits the criteria set for disability quota.
He has also defended her decision to use a cabin in the collectorate as her office by taking away its nameplate, saying her father gave his consent for her to do so. Additionally, he has refuted claims that she falsified documents to secure entry into IAS by saying the UPSC had stringent requirements regarding medical document submissions.
Dilip Khedkar’s paternal love
Puja Khedkar and her family have become the focus of national media attention after she found herself embroiled in controversy over her use of fraudulent disability and OBC certificates to pass the civil service exam. Additionally, this controversy exposed Dilip Khedkar’s vast wealth; a retired Maharashtra government officer accused of amassing assets disproportionate to his income.
Dilip Khedkar, who served on the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB), is suspected of owning property worth crores – land, cars and companies according to an ACB complaint filed by former Maharashtra government official Tanaji Gambhir. This complaint contains details regarding these assets.
Puja Khedkar’s father has now received pre-arrest bail until July 25. Pune Police had interrogated both him and Manorama Khedkar over video footage showing her brandishing a firearm during a land dispute dispute in Mulshi Tehsil.
A senior lawyer informed NDTV that a court in Mumbai has issued an interim order barring Dilip Khedkar and his partner from entering certain areas, and will file an appeal against this order. Furthermore, Dilip Khedkar will appear before the CBI for questioning related to the threatening gun case on Monday and also remains under arrest in extortion case where he was jailed for six months in 2021.
Dilip Khedkar’s conspiracy theory
Dilip Khedkar, father of Puja Khedkar, believes someone is out to get her. Although the central government has formed a one-member panel to investigate her conduct, that doesn’t seem enough to ease his fears – Dilip believes an elaborate plot has been orchestrated against his daughter by jealous colleagues or extraterrestrial entities.
He contends that an “attorney general saboteur” was behind all of this drama and has accused police officers of discriminating against his daughter unfairly. His daughter did nothing wrong and her actions were just an expression of parental authority, while he has accused them of bias against her.
In an interview with India Today TV, he claimed that allegations made against his daughter were motivated by political considerations. Additionally, he claimed he was being harassed because he requested she have separate offices and cars while also using red-blue beacon lights on private vehicles.
Dilip is a retired Maharashtra government officer and father to probationary IAS officer Puja Khedkar. Dilip has come under investigation by the Anti-Corruption Bureau due to allegations that he owns unaccounted wealth – such as land, vehicles and companies owned by him – as he ran for Lok Sabha elections under Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi ticket and declared assets worth Rs 40 crore in his election affidavit.
Dilip Khedkar’s saboteur
Dilip Khedkar, father of Puja Khedkar – who recently made headlines for her disruptive and inappropriate demands as an IAS trainee officer – has spoken up in defence of her and denied any wrongdoing on his daughter’s part, insisting that asking for space to sit was not inappropriate behavior. Speaking exclusively to India Today TV in an exclusive interview, Khedkar stated that her demands are only harassment on behalf of some.
Khedkar’s entry into the civil services was clouded in controversy after she allegedly falsified disability and OBC status claims in order to pass her exam. As a probationary officer in Pune, she also came under scrutiny due to allegedly using red-blue beacon lights and sporting a car marked “Maharashtra government”.
After her action was brought to the notice of Maharashtra state government officials, an investigation was initiated against her by its General Administration Department (GAD). Suhas Diwase of Pune district collector Suhas Diwase was instructed by GAD to take appropriate actions against her for numerous violations, such as seeking special privileges not available to probationary officers such as having her own cabin and peon, as well as using beacon lights bearing an “Maharashtra government” insignia on her private car.
Puja Khedkar was recently transferred to Washim for the remainder of her training as a supernumerary assistant collector. According to reports, her new workplace will be owned by Thermoverita Engineering Private Limited which specializes in furnaces and scrubbers for steel mills.
