IAS officer Puja Khedkar tried to press DCP to free man held over theft: Official

Mumbai: The Navi Mumbai police have reported to the Maharashtra government that controversial probationary IAS officer Puja Khedkar had allegedly tried to pressure a DCP-rank officer to release a man held in a theft case, an official said on Friday.

The incident had occurred on May 18 at Panvel police station wherein Khedkar allegedly phoned Deputy Commissioner of Police Vivek Pansare and urged him to release a transporter, Ishwar Uttarwade, arrested in a theft case.

Khedkar apparently told the DCP that Uttarwade was innocent and that the charges against him were minor, the official said.

Though Khedkar had identified herself during the phone call with Pansare, the DCP was not sure whether the caller was indeed an IAS officer or an imposter, the official said.

The Navi Mumbai police did not act on the call and Uttarwade is still in judicial custody for the alleged crime, he said.

Khedkar recently came under the spotlight when she was transferred from Pune to Washim district before the completion of her training after kicking up controversy with demands such as a separate cabin and staff.

After learning about the conduct of the 32-year-old probationary IAS officer, the Navi Mumbai police communicated with the Pune collector’s office and a senior home department employee, the official said.

On the advice of the home department official, DCP Pansare sent a two-page report on the alleged phone call to Chief Secretary Sujata Saunik, who holds the additional charge of the home department, through Navi Mumbai Police Commissioner Milind Bharambe, he said.

Besides her conduct at the Pune collector’s office, there are also allegations that Khedkar misused the disability provision and Other Backward Class quota to secure a position in the elite Indian Administrative Services (IAS).

Meanwhile, the Centre on Thursday constituted a single-member committee “to verify the candidature” of the 2023-batch IAS officer of the Maharashtra cadre.

In a statement, the Centre said the probe would be conducted by an additional secretary-rank officer to verify the claims over Khedkar’s candidature and other details.