Delhi’s Patiala House Court is expected to deliver its order on August 1 regarding the anticipatory bail plea of IAS probationer Puja Khedkar, who is accused in a case of cheating and forgery.
During the hearing, Khedkar informed the court that she was being targeted for filing a sexual harassment complaint against an officer. Additional Sessions Judge Devender Kumar Jangala reserved the order after hearing arguments on the application filed by Khedkar, who claimed she faced an “imminent threat of arrest.”
The prosecution opposed the application, alleging that Khedkar had “cheated the system.” During the proceedings, Khedkar stated that she sought anticipatory bail “to establish her innocence.” Advocate Bina Mahadevan, representing Khedkar, told the court, “I (Khedkar) filed a complaint for sexual harassment, and that is why all this is being done against me. This is all happening at the behest of the collector against whom I have lodged the complaint. The individual asked me to come and sit in a private room. I said I am a qualified IAS officer and would not do that. I am pressing for anticipatory bail to establish my innocence.”
Mahadevan argued that Khedkar had not suppressed any information and had merely made an error in reporting the number of attempts. “I wrote five but should have stated twelve. This is because I availed those attempts under a different quota. Whether this was done in good faith or not is to be inquired into,” she said.
The advocate further stated that Khedkar had been summoned by multiple authorities. “IAS Academy Mussoorie has called me (Khedkar), Pune Commissioner has called me, and DoPT has issued me a notice as well. I need anticipatory bail to defend myself before all these forums,” Mahadevan said. She added that since the case, the media had been engaged in a witch hunt against Khedkar, but the IAS trainee had not approached the media once, “because I have full faith in the justice system.”
The prosecution opposed the bail application, asserting that Khedkar had exploited loopholes and altered her name. “We are at a very nascent stage. We need her custodial interrogation,” public prosecutor Atul Srivastava said. When queried by the court about the urgency of her arrest if the investigation was still in its early stages, Srivastava responded, “If she receives anticipatory bail, she will not cooperate. She changed her father’s name and her mother’s name. How? There is a conspiracy to deceive the examination system and the public at large. She has caused significant harm to those who might have otherwise qualified. Such individuals who cheat the system must be dealt with very seriously. She has abused the process of law,” he added, indicating that the potential for her abusing the law remained.
Srivastava further mentioned that there were nine attempts under the OBC criteria. “In the OBC quota, there is a concept of creamy layer and non-creamy layer. Her father declared assets of Rs 53 crore. To circumvent this, she claimed her parents were divorced and that she lived with her mother. This is also part of the investigation. We will also examine the medical documents,” he said.
The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has filed a case against Khedkar for allegedly fraudulently availing the benefits of quota by faking her identity to take the civil services examination beyond the permissible number of attempts. Senior Advocate Naresh Kaushik, representing the UPSC, stated, “She unlawfully secured public employment. This offense affects not only the UPSC but society at large. She has cheated the examination process. If the UPSC had the means to prosecute, it would have done so. The offense was committed with significant intelligence. The investigation is necessary to uncover the methods used by her, as others might employ similar tactics.”
