The Delhi High Court on Monday dismissed the anticipatory bail plea filed by former probationer IAS officer Puja Khedkar who is accused of “misrepresenting and falsifying facts" in her application for Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Civil Services Examination, 2022.
Justice Chandra Dhari Singh denied anticipatory bail to Khedkar observing that prima facie, a strong case is made out against her.
The Court also vacated the interim protection from arrest granted to Khedkar in August.
The Court observed that prima facie, Khedkar is not a fit candidate to avail the benefits meant for disadvantaged groups that she has been availing the benefit by forging documents.
It said that the steps taken by Khedkar were a part of a large conspiracy to manipulate the system and that investigation will be affected if she was granted anticipatory bail.
Noting that UPSC is one of the most prestigious examinations in the world, the Court said that it was a classic case where fraud is committed by Khedkar not only with the constitutional body but also society at large.
"Apart from owning luxury cars and various properties, the family of the petitioner i.e., the father and mother have held high positions in the executive. Therefore, there is a high possibility that the family members have colluded with the unknown powerful persons in order to get the requisite certificates produced by the petitioner," the Court said.
It added that Khedkar's conduct has been solely driven with the motive to dupe the complainant UPSC and all the documents allegedly forged by her were done in order to reap benefits out of schemes introduced for the disadvantageous groups in the society.
"In view thereof, this Court deems it appropriate to dismiss the present application filed for grant of anticipatory bail as this Court is prima facie satisfied that a strong case is made out against the petitioner and the said conduct is part of a larger conspiracy which can only be revealed if the investigative agency is given the due opportunity to apprehend the petitioner and investigate the case without there being any chance to hamper the witnesses and the evidence," the Court concluded.
It was Khedkar's case that she will cooperate in the probe. She claimed that her custody was not required as all the evidence is documentary in nature.
On the other hand, the Delhi Police had said that Khedkar's custodial interrogation was necessary to unearth the involvement of other individuals in the matter.
The UPSC, complainant in the case, had called Khedkar a “mastermind”. It claimed that the way she has got into the system speaks volumes about how influential she is.
On July 31, the UPSC cancelled Khedkar's candidature and debarred her permanently from all the future examinations and selections of the Commission. As per UPSC, she was found “guilty of acting in contravention of the provisions of the Civil Services Examination-2022 Rules”.
While denying anticipatory bail to her, the trial court had directed the investigating agency to widen its scope of investigation in the case and to conduct its probe in all fairness.
The trial court had further directed the probe agency to find out the candidates recommended in the past who have availed the benefits beyond permissible limits and those who obtained benefits under OBC category or under persons with benchmark disabilities without being entitled of the same.
Khedkar joined the Pune Collectorate as part of her probationary training in June. The allegation against her is that she “misused” quotas under Other Backward Classes (OBC) and Persons With Benchmark Disabilities (PwBD) to clear the CSE.
An FIR was registered against Khedkar by UPSC in the matter. A show cause notice was also issued to her on cancellation of her selection. She has also been barred from future examinations.
As per a public statement given by UPSC, a detailed and thorough investigation into the “misdemeanour” of Khedkar, revealed that she “fraudulently availed attempts beyond the permissible limit” under the Examination Rules by “faking her identity” by changing her name.
The statement also said that Khedkar changed the names of her father and mother as well as her photograph, signature, email address, mobile number and address.
Case Title: Puja Khedkar v. State