Centre Discharges Puja Khedkar From IAS Immediately Over Quota Misuse

The Indian government has discharged former trainee officer Puja Khedkar from the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) with immediate effect. Khedkar, who faced allegations of misusing OBC and disability quota benefits in the civil service exams, was dismissed under Rule 12 of the IAS (Probation) Rules, 1954. This rule allows for the discharge of probationers deemed ineligible for the service.

According to the official order dated September 6, Khedkar’s discharge followed an investigation into her examination records. Initially, Khedkar appeared for the Civil Services Examination (CSE) under the OBC quota using the name ‘Puja Diliprao Khedkar’ up to 2020-21. In the 2021-22 exam cycle, after exhausting her attempts, she reappeared under both the OBC and PwBD (Persons with Benchmark Disabilities) quotas using the name ‘Puja Manorama Dilip Khedkar’ and secured a rank of 821.

A single-member committee was established on July 11 to verify her eligibility. The committee’s report, submitted on July 24, revealed that Khedkar had exceeded the permissible number of attempts for her categories, having utilized all nine attempts allowed under the OBC and PwBD categories by 2020. This was against the regulations outlined in Rule 3 of the CSE Rules 2022, which stipulate a maximum of nine attempts for candidates in these categories.

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Following a summary inquiry, it was determined that Khedkar was ineligible to sit for the CSE-2022, the year she was selected and appointed to the IAS. Consequently, she was discharged from the service. On July 31, the UPSC canceled her provisional candidature and prevented her from participating in future examinations or selections.

Additionally, the UPSC initiated a criminal case against Khedkar for charges including cheating, fraudulence, and forgery. Khedkar challenged the UPSC’s decision in the Delhi High Court, contending that she did not manipulate her identity in her applications.

Khedkar, who was previously serving as a probationary assistant collector at the Pune district collectorate, was reassigned to Washim amid the ongoing allegations regarding her misrepresentation under the disability category.