Dilip Khedkar is currently evading authorities after a case was filed against him and his wife, Manorama, following the circulation of a video showing her brandishing a gun and threatening individuals.
Mumbai:
Dilip Khedkar, a retired Maharashtra government official and father of trainee
IAS officer Puja Khedkar, has been suspended twice on corruption charges.
Currently, he is evading arrest after a case was filed against him and his
wife, Manorama Khedkar, following the viral spread of a video showing Manorama
threatening individuals with a gun. Additionally, the Pune Anti-Corruption
Bureau has initiated an investigation into him based on a complaint about his
disproportionate assets.
Dilip
Khedkar faced suspensions in both 2018 and 2020. NDTV-obtained documents reveal
that in 2015, over 300 small business owners accused him of extortion and
creating unnecessary trouble. In 2018, while serving as the Regional Officer in
Kolhapur, the local sawmill and timber merchants association filed a police
complaint alleging he demanded bribes between ₹ 25,000 and ₹ 50,000 to restore
power and water supplies.
The report
also indicates that Khedkar was once absent for six to seven months without authorization.
A 2019 complaint alleged he demanded ₹ 20 lakh from a company. His 2020
suspension was under Rule 3(1) of the Maharashtra Civil Services (Conduct)
Rules, 1979, sub-section 1(a) of Rule 4 of the Maharashtra Civil Services
(Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 1979, and the Maharashtra Water (Prevention and
Control of Pollution) Act, 1983, citing multiple complaints and initiating an
inquiry.
The
Khedkars' assets are under scrutiny amidst an investigation into 34-year-old
Puja Khedkar, whose IAS selection has drawn significant questions. An ACB
complaint highlights the land, cars, and companies owned by Dilip Khedkar.
After being questioned for three days, he and his wife became unreachable, and
police are now searching for them.
The issues
began when Pune district collector Suhas Diwase wrote to Maharashtra Chief
Secretary Sujata Saunik about trainee IAS officer Puja Khedkar's requests for
unentitled perks. It was soon discovered that she had been selected as an IAS
officer under false claims of disability and OBC reservation. Puja did not
appear for a medical check-up to verify her disability claim and submitted a
report from a private facility instead.
Puja Khedkar
had sought OBC reservation benefits as a non-creamy layer candidate, which
requires an annual family income below ₹ 8 lakh. However, RTI activist Vijay
Kumbhar pointed out that Dilip Khedkar's affidavits from his Lok Sabha election
candidacy show assets worth ₹ 40 crore. According to a PTI report, Kumbhar
stated that Dilip Khedkar, in his Lok Sabha election affidavit, declared an
estimated wealth of ₹ 40 crores and an annual income of ₹ 49 lakh, with this
information being publicly accessible.
The Centre
has now ordered an investigation into Puja Khedkar's IAS selection, and her training
has been suspended.