New Delhi [India], January 15 (HBTV): Former IAS officer Puja Khedkar has approached the Supreme Court, challenging the Delhi High Court's order that dismissed her anticipatory bail plea.

The High Court had refused to grant her bail, stating that a strong prima facie case was made out against her and that an investigation was required to uncover the "larger conspiracy" to manipulate the system.

The matter is expected to be listed before the Supreme Court tomorrow.

While passing its judgment, the High Court made strong observations against Khedkar, stating, "It's a classic example of fraud, not only with a constitutional body but also with society and the nation as a whole."

The High Court bench noted that the UPSC is regarded as a prestigious examination and emphasized that the incident represented a fraud not only against the organization but also against society at large. The court stressed that interrogation is necessary to uncover the conspiracy involved.

As a result, the court ruled to dismiss the plea and vacated the interim protection granted to Khedkar.

The court observed that, prima facie, the conduct in this case appears to be aimed at deceiving the organization. It noted that Khedkar was not a legitimate candidate for the benefits but had been obtaining them through forged documents. The court also highlighted that her parents held high-ranking positions, suggesting the possibility of collusion with influential individuals.

Khedkar is facing criminal charges filed by the Delhi Police, accusing her of cheating and unlawfully claiming OBC and disability quota benefits in the civil services examination.

Through Advocate Bina Madhavan, Khedkar stated that she is willing to cooperate with the investigation and submitted that custodial interrogation is not necessary. However, Delhi Police, represented by Special Public Prosecutor Advocate Sanjeev Bhandari, informed the court that the investigation is ongoing and custodial interrogation may be required to uncover the larger conspiracy. They added that certain aspects of the conspiracy still need to be examined, including her fraudulent attempt to avail more examination attempts.

Earlier, Delhi Police opposed the anticipatory bail plea, informing the Delhi High Court that a larger conspiracy was emerging as the investigation progressed. Meanwhile, the UPSC withdrew its perjury applications, stating that it would file a separate independent application.

The UPSC alleged that Khedkar attempted to manipulate the judicial system by filing a false affidavit. The Commission stated that Khedkar had committed perjury with the intent to deceive the court and obtain favorable orders.

The UPSC further denied claims made by Khedkar, including the assertion that the Commission collected her biometrics. The UPSC clarified that it did not collect biometric information from any candidate during the Personality Test of the Civil Services Examinations.

Khedkar recently filed an anticipatory bail application concerning an FIR registered against her for allegedly "faking her identity to fraudulently avail attempts beyond the permissible limit" in the civil services examination.

In a related development, the Delhi Police registered an FIR based on a complaint filed by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) against Puja Manorama Dilip Khedkar.

The Delhi High Court has also issued a notice to suspend IAS trainee Puja Khedkar following an application from UPSC. UPSC claimed that she made an incorrect assertion in her petition that she was not served the order of cancellation of her candidature. The Commission stated that the communication regarding the cancellation of her candidature was sent to her registered email ID, which Khedkar had falsely denied.

(ANI)