New Delhi: The Union Public Service Commission on Wednesday assured the Delhi High Court that it would provide former probationary Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Puja Khedkar a copy of its order cancelling her candidature within two days.
Cancellation order will be communicated to Khedkar within two days, UPSC told High Court
Senior advocate Naresh Kaushik, who appeared for the UPSC, told Justice Jyoti Singh that the cancellation order will be communicated to Khedkar by the UPSC within two days on her email id as well as her last known address.
The High Court was hearing a plea filed by Khedkar challenging the press release of the UPSC stating that her candidature has been cancelled.
Taking note of the submissions of the UPSC, Justice Jyoti Singh disposed of Khedkar’s petition and also also asked her to provide her address to the UPSC and said that the order of the UPSC be supplied to her physically and electronically.
“The petition is disposed of granting liberty to the petitioner (Khedkar) to approach the appropriate forum in accordance with law. It is made clear that this court has neither entered into nor expressed any opinion on the merits of the case and the filing of the present petition will not come in the way of the appropriate forum in adjudicating the issue on merits,” the High Court said.
Khedkar will have to go to CAT for other reliefs: High Court
The court also said that Khedkar will have to go to the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) for reliefs like challenging the order of the UPSC cancelling her candidature.
UPSC on July 31 cancelled Khedkar’s candidature and debarred her from future exams
The UPSC on July 31 cancelled Khedkar’s candidature and debarred her from future exams.
The Delhi Police had recently registered a case against Khedkar on a complaint by the UPSC, which has said that she “fraudulently availed attempts beyond the permissible limit under the Examination Rules by faking her identity by way of changing her name, her father’s & mother’s name, her photograph/ signature, her email ID, mobile number and address.”
Khedkar had moved a Delhi court earlier seeking anticipatory bail in the case registered by the Delhi Police on a complaint by UPSC, however, the court rejected her plea and directed the Delhi Police to widen its probe and to also investigate if anyone from inside the UPSC helped her and also investigate if the benefits under OBC and Persons with Disabilities (PwD) quotas without entitlement have been availed by other persons also.