Puja Khedkar submitted non-creamy layer OBC certificate for MBBS admission in 2007: Medical college director

Amidst the ongoing controversy over probationary Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Puja Khedkar, it has now been revealed that Ms. Khedkar had submitted a non-creamy layer OBC Certificate to secure admission to MBBS in 2007.

As per information given by Arvind Bhore, Director of Shrimati Kashibai Navale Medical College and General Hospital, the 2023 batch IAS officer from the Maharashtra cadre had secured a seat for the MBBS course in the college through the Association of Management of Unaided Private Medical and Dental Colleges of Maharashtra (AMUPDMC) entrance test and had scored 146 marks out of 200.

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She was enrolled in the college’s first batch in 2007. Giving further information, Mr. Bhore said that she had also taken the CET exams but since she achieved a better score in the AMUPDMC exam the seat was given on that basis. The AMUPMDC exam no longer exists after the introduction of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET).

Mr. Khedkar had secured a seat in the college under the reserved Nomadic tribe-3 category, furnishing a non-creamy layer OBC certificate.

Mr. Bhore said, “She had provided a non-creamy layer certificate of the NT-3 category of the Vanjari community at the time of the admission. We had checked all the documents at the time of submission and found them to be authentic government records. The issuing authority was from Ahmednagar district.”

He also added, “She had submitted her medical fitness certificate and according to that she was medically fit.”

Earlier, Pune RTI activist Vijay Kumbhar had raised questions about Ms. Khedkar’s appointment alleging that she did not fall under the OBC non-creamy layer as her father had assets worth ₹40 crore.

“As per the rules, only those come under the OBC non-creme layer category whose parents are under 8 lakh per annum of income, but their income shows that it is 40 crore. Her parents contested the recent Lok Sabha polls and all the property details are there in the affidavit,” he said.

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“Her father, Dilip Khedkar, in his Lok Sabha polls affidavit, showed a conservative estimated wealth of ₹40 crore and an annual income of ₹49 lakh. The information is in the public domain. Based on the election affidavit filed by her father in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections, the total assets of Ms. Khedkar’s father amount to ₹40 crore,” claimed Mr. Kumbhar.

“This raises the question of how Puja Khedkar could come under the OBC non-creamy layer category. A detailed investigation must be done on how she was appointed as an IAS officer in that category,” he further said.

“I did some research and it has been revealed in the research that either Puja Khedkar gave a non-creamy layer certificate or her father had been lying in the election affidavit, whatever it is, all these things need to be investigated and the truth must come to the fore,” said Mr. Kumbhar claimed.

Ms. Khedkar has been under scrutiny for allegedly abusing her authority and submitting fraudulent disability and caste certificates to qualify for the civil service exam. She has been accused of various corruption cases, including the unauthorised use of a vehicle equipped with a beacon light and demanding privileges such as a separate office, official vehicle, and staff, which are typically not granted to trainee officers.