The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) recently moved the Delhi High Court against disqualified IAS probationer Puja Khedkar, accusing her of perjury and attempting to manipulate the judicial system. As per the apex recruiting body of the Union government, Ms. Khedkar filed false documents to gain favourable outcomes in her case.
Subsequently, the Delhi High Court ex-IAS Puja Khedkar’s response to a plea by the UPSC seeking initiation of perjury proceedings against her for allegedly giving false statements and affidavits in the court. Justice Jyoti Singh issued notice to Khedkar on the UPSC’s application and granted her three weeks to file her reply to the matter.
The court also listed the matter for further hearing on November 26th.
The UPSC contended that on July 31st communication by which Khedkar’s candidature was cancelled was communicated to her on her registered email id the same day. It said it was the same email ID, which was registered in her online application for the Civil Service Program (CSP) 2022.
Ms. Khedkar had earlier approached the Delhi HC challenging UPSC’s press release stating that her candidature had been cancelled. She claimed that the cancellation order was never communicated to her and she came to know about it only through the press release. The court then disposed of the petition after noting the UPSC’s submission that it would communicate within two days its order cancelling her candidature.
On July 31st, the UPSC cancelled Khedkar’s candidature and debarred her from future exams. She was accused of “misrepresenting information” in her application for the UPSC Civil Services Examination, 2022, and was also accused of cheating and wrongly availing of OBC and disability quota benefits.
