- Ms. Khedkar was directed to AIIMS for verification.
- The purpose was to confirm her claims of multiple disabilities.
- These disabilities included locomotor problems.
- The claims were made during the application process.Ms. kje
1.Pune: Trainee IAS officer Puja Khedkar is under scrutiny over claims she lied about mental and visual disabilities to clear the Civil Services exam.
2.The UPSC, the government’s recruiting body, sent her for a medical check-up because “someone must have doubted” her claim of infirmities.
3.A senior doctor and former Director of Delhi’s All India Institute of Medical Science, Dr. MC Mishra.
4.There are also questions over her claiming OBC, or Other Backward Classes, status.
5.”Someone must have doubted Puja Khedkar’s disability (claim)… that is why she was sent to AIIMS for examination,” Dr. MC Mishra said this afternoon.
Ms. Puja Khedkar had been directed to AIIMS to confirm claims of multiple disabilities, including locomotor problems, which she had made during the application process. However, according to multiple reports, she skipped as many as six appointments between April and August 2022. “Before admissions, a board is formed and the candidate is examined. There are many types of disabilities… we test the proportion of each claim of disability,” Dr. MC Mishra, the ex-Director of AIIMS, told NDTV.
“When Ms. Khedkar sought selection due to disability, UPSC must have asked AIIMS to get the disability examination done,” Dr. MC Mishra explained. “Usually, this type of disability is not given in RML (Delhi’s government-run Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, one of the city’s largest facilities).”
Dr. Mishra also suggested how Ms. Khedkar might have managed to pass the ultra-competitive Civil Services exam without definitive proof of her claimed disabilities, stating, “Even if one does not have a disability, it is not impossible to get a disability certificate.”
This week, it emerged that Ms. Khedkar had, in August, possibly after skipping the sixth summons from AIIMS, sought a disability certificate from Pune’s Aundh Hospital, which turned her down.
“A copy of the hospital’s letter to Ms. Khedkar has been accessed by NDTV. “Please refer to your application dated 23/08/2022 for issue of disability certificate for following disability: Locomotor Disability (which can refer to cerebral palsy or a condition affecting bones or muscles that could restrict movement of the legs or arms) … you have been examined by the undersigned / Medical Board on 11/10/2022 and I / We regret to inform… it is not possible to issue a disability certificate in your favour,” she was told.”
“A copy of the hospital’s letter to Ms. Khedkar.”
- Puja Khedkar, a 2023-batch IAS officer, is facing scrutiny for allegedly falsifying claims of mental and visual disabilities to clear the Civil Services exam.
- The UPSC sent her for a medical examination due to doubts about her disability claims.
- Dr. MC Mishra, former Director of AIIMS, highlighted discrepancies in the issuance of disability certificates.
- Ms. Khedkar missed multiple appointments for medical examinations at AIIMS between April and August 2022.
- She was denied a disability certificate from Pune’s Aundh Hospital but obtained one from another hospital citing an old ACL tear.
- Ms. Khedkar faces additional allegations of misusing her position and privileges, prompting an investigation and potential disciplinary action.
Puja Khedkar, a trainee IAS officer from the 2023 batch, is embroiled in controversy over allegations that she misrepresented mental and visual disabilities to secure her position in the Civil Services. The UPSC initiated a medical check-up following suspicions regarding her disability claims, a move supported by Dr. MC Mishra, who criticized lax protocols in issuing disability certificates.
Reports reveal Ms. Khedkar skipped multiple scheduled medical appointments at AIIMS, further complicating her case. Despite facing rejection from Pune’s Aundh Hospital, she obtained a disability certificate from another hospital citing an old knee injury. These developments have intensified scrutiny on Ms. Khedkar, who also faces accusations of abusing her authority, leading to a government-led investigation that could result in her dismissal from the position initially appointed in Pune and subsequent transfer to Washim.
Ms. Khedkar, whose parents are now involved in legal cases as well, had previously declined to comment on her situation, citing “government rules” that prohibited her from making statements. However, on Monday, she broke her silence, criticizing the “media trial” surrounding her actions.
