'I Will Return Soon': IAS Officer Puja Khedkar As She Leaves Washim Amidst UPSC Action

Controversial IAS officer Puja Khedkar left Washim on Friday, following the UPSC's initiation of several actions against her, including the filing of a police case for taking the civil services exam under a false identity. "The judiciary will take its course," stated Khedkar, who is accused of abusing her power and privileges during her training in Pune, to the press outside the Washim government rest house, where she had started her duties earlier in the month.

"I will return soon," she told the media before departing in a private vehicle for Nagpur. After being reported by Pune district collector Suhas Diwase for misconduct, Khedkar was reassigned from Pune to Washim as an extra assistant collector.

The allegations against Khedkar, a member of the 2023 IAS batch, include demanding amenities beyond those she was entitled to as a trainee and taking over the antechamber of a senior official.

Known for displaying her status, Khedkar often drove around Pune in her personal luxury Audi car, which she had illegally fitted with a red-blue beacon light, a 'Maharashtra Government' sticker, and a VIP registration number, reportedly with a contractor's assistance.

The Union Public Service Commission has served her a show cause notice to cancel her civil services examination-2022 candidacy and bar her from future exams/selections.