Pune: Days after his daughter IAS probationary officer Puja Khedkar, who’s going through an investigation for misuse of energy and violation of guidelines of appointment, her father retired bureaucrat Dilip Khedkar spoke up in her defence. Khedkar, who retired from Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB), in 2020, claimed his daughter was a sufferer of a conspiracy being hatched to focus on his household by “someone”.
Speaking to the Hindustan Times, Khedkar, stated her incapacity certificates was authentic. “There are many kinds of disabilities. Puja suffers from vision impairment, which is more than 40 per cent. Therefore she fulfils 40% criteria of the disability,” he stated, including “medical experts on a panel had verified her disabilities before issuing the certificate”.
Khedkar additionally stated his daughter has “a certain category of mental illness which was also verified by medical professionals before the disability certificate was issued”.
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In 2022, the 32-year-old probationer who was not too long ago transferred to Washim on Pune district collector’s directions, had approached CAT in search of instructions to offer reservations for the individuals with incapacity for A (visible impairment) and D (psychological incapacity) classes as offered beneath part 34 of Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016.
She nonetheless failed to point out up on the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, when summoned for a medical examination on April 22, 2022 and subsequently on 5 completely different events. When questioned, Khedkar, stated “she had tested positive for Covid at the time” and that there was no official communication for additional assessments.
On the difficulty of his daughter availing the OBC reservation advantages, when the household’s wealth was ₹ 80 crore ( ₹ 40 crore of Dilip, ₹18 crore of his spouse Manorama and ₹22 crore of Puja), which defies the ₹8 lakh restrict prescribed beneath creamy layer situation, Khedkar stated, “I will soon speak up on the matter and address all the allegations”.
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Meanwhile, responding to a 2023 video clip of his spouse brandishing a firearm on a disputed Mulshi farmland, which did the rounds of social media following which on Friday an FIR was registered by the Pune Rural SP, Khedkar insisted that the land belonged to the household. “We officially purchased the land from another family and now they are creating hurdles for us.” He added that the household has issued an announcement on this regards by way of advocate Ravindra Sutar, which acknowledged Khedkar’s spouse Manorama had carried the weapon for self-defence and that she had permission to own the gun.
When HT drew his consideration on his daughter’s current switch from Pune to Washim, after she was blamed of excessive handedness in workplace by Pune district collector. Khedkar stated: “Things are not as they seem from the outside. Only we know what happened at the collector’s office and how he behaved with us.”
Source: www.hindustantimes.com
