No end to IAS Puja Khedkar's woes as engineering firm linked to her mother sealed

Pune: The Pimpri-Chinchwad civic body on Friday sealed an engineering firm linked to the mother of controversial probationary Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Puja Khedkar over unpaid property tax amounting to nearly Rs 2 lakh, municipal officials said.

The junior bureaucrat's mother, Manorama Khedkar, is currently in the custody of Pune police in a criminal case.

The Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) in Pune district sealed the defunct firm -- Thermoverita India Pvt Ltd -- located in the Talawade area over unpaid property dues.

Notably, Puja Khedkar, while applying for a disability certificate at the Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial Hospital (YCM) in the Pimpri-Chinchwad township for selection into civil services under quota, had given the engineering firm's location as her residential address.

"The property tax for 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 for Thermoverita India Pvt Ltd has been pending for the last two years. Additionally, the current year's outstanding is also pending. As their dues were unpaid in 2023, first they (owner) were issued notices and later as a graded response, we first snapped their water connection. Since, the dues are unpaid for the last two years, we as a next procedure, sealed the property," said PCMC commissioner Shekhar Singh.

The total outstanding for the last two years was Rs 1.96 lakh and if the current year's dues are added, the pending amount goes up to Rs 2.77 lakh, he said.

Manorama Khedkar was arrested on Thursday by the Pune rural police for allegedly threatening some persons with a gun over a land dispute at Dhadwali village in Mulshi tehsil in 2023.

In more trouble for Puja Khedkar, the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) on Friday took a series of action, including registration of a police case, against the batch probationary IAS officer for fraudulently availing attempts in the civil services examination by faking her identity.

The commission has also issued a show cause notice for cancellation of her candidature of the civil services examination-2022 and debarment from future examinations and selections.

The 2023-batch probationary IAS officer is accused of misusing power and privileges, by demanding perks and facilities she was not entitled for, during her training in Pune district collectorate recently.