Puja Khedkar flees to Arab country fearing arrest: Reports

New Delhi: A day after the Delhi court dismissed the anticipatory bail application of Puja Khedkar, some media reports have claimed that the controversial former IAS trainee has reportedly fled to Dubai to avoid the threat of arrest. 

Earlier, reports suggested Khedkar had gone missing and her phone was switched off too, raising concerns of her fleeing the country. She is accused of faking her identity to fraudulently avail attempts beyond the permissible limits provided for the Civil Services Examinations (CSE) by submitting false OBC and PwBD (Persons with Benchmark Disabilities) certificates. 

Turning down the anticipatory bail plea, the court had noted there are serious allegations against Khedkar which "require a thorough investigation”. Further, the court asked the investigating agency to find out if anyone from inside the UPSC had helped Khedkar.

On Wednesday, the UPSC cancelled Khedkar’s provisional candidature for CSE-2022, and permanently debarred her from all future exams/selections while the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration in Mussoorie recently removed her from field training as a trainee IAS officer in Pune and Washim districts. The UPSC, Central government, Maharashtra government, and the police are conducting separate probes against Puja Khedkar.