Delhi Police, in its second status report submitted to the Delhi High Court on Wednesday, stated that the disability certificates submitted by former IAS probationer Puja Khedkar are most likely “forged and fabricated.”
Khedkar had submitted two separate disability certificates for her UPSC exams.
“Disability Certificate (Multiple Disability) vide No. MH2610119900342407 has not been issued by the Issuing Medical Authority, Ahmednagar, Maharashtra as per our Civil Surgeon Office Records, hence the possibility of Disability Certificate forged and fabricated is more likely,” the report noted.
The disability certificates from 2018 and 2021, which cited ‘multiple disabilities,’ were purportedly issued by the Ahmednagar District Civil Hospital for Khedkar’s UPSC attempts in 2022 and 2023.
However, according to the Delhi Police’s latest status report, the Ahmednagar District Civil Authority has denied issuing the certificate claiming ‘multiple disabilities’ to Khedkar.
Khedkar had claimed that she was suffering from various physical and mental illnesses and allegedly used this to secure benefits under the relevant quotas to boost her chances of passing the civil exams.
Apart from the disability certificates, Khedkar is alleged to have misrepresented information in her application for the UPSC Civil Services Examination, 2022, to secure reservation benefits.
First status report
In its first status report submitted to the high court, the Delhi Police had revealed that the ex-IAS trainee officer committed fraud by altering her name to gain additional attempts at the UPSC examination and providing false information about her parents’ marital status.
The report further suggested that others may have been involved in Khedkar’s identity fraud case.
“That from the facts and circumstances mentioned above, it appears that the petitioner alone could not have managed to make such manipulations at all levels. There is certainly a deep-rooted conspiracy, which is required to be unearthed. It is a matter of investigation to find as to who all and how many persons are involved in such a big fraud, where manipulation of details has been done with a premier institute like UPSC,” the report stated.
On July 31, the UPSC had cancelled Khedkar’s provisional candidature and barred her from appearing in any future examinations or selections. Additionally, the commission initiated a criminal case against Khedkar for cheating, fraudulence and forgery.
(With inputs from agencies)
Comments
0 comment