In the two-minute video, Puja's mother Manorama can be heard yelling at a man while waving a pistol in her hand before hiding it when she spots the camera.
An undated video of trainee IAS officer Puja Khedkar’s mother threatening a group of men with a gun has gone viral, making matters worse for the probationer facing the heat over a host of issues.
The 2023-batch officer is accused of faking OBC certificates, claiming she was visually and mentally disabled for her UPSC selection, and refusing to take tests to corroborate her claims.
Several reports allege that Puja’s father Dilip Khedkar, a retired IAS officer, amassed property worth crores at several locations including 25 acres in Mulshi taluka of Pune district.
Locals allege that the family also tried to occupy the land of neighbouring farmers. When the farmers opposed this, Puja’s mother Manorama Khedkar showed up at the property with her security guards.
In the two-minute video recorded by one of the locals, Manorama can be heard shouting at a man while waving a pistol in her hand before hiding it when she spots the camera.
“Show me the satbara (land documents). The land documents have my name,” she threatens the man in Marathi. He says that his name is on the land document and the case is in court. She then asks to see the court order and warns the man not to “teach her the rules”.
Farmers also allege when they went to Pune’s Paud Police Station to file a complaint against the family, they were turned away.
Puja Khedkar owns five plots of land and two apartments across Maharashtra valued at Rs 22 crore. She also owns two apartments in Ahmednagar and Pune worth Rs 45 lakh and Rs 75 lakh respectively.
The junior officer is facing allegations of “abuse of power”. It is alleged that she was using a red beacon, VIP number plates, and a “Government of Maharashtra” sticker on her private car, an Audi sedan.
She was also using Additional Collector Ajay More’s office while he was away and reportedly removed office furniture without his consent and also demanded letterheads. Such privileges are not allowed for a probation officer.
Puja was then transferred to Washim. The Centre has set up a single-member panel “to verify the candidature” of the IAS officer of the Maharashtra cadre.
