The Supreme Court on Wednesday granted anticipatory bail to Puja Khedkar, a former IAS probationer, who faces allegations of cheating and fraudulently claiming benefits under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) and disability quotas in the UPSC civil services examination.
The decision was delivered by a bench comprising Justices B V Nagarathna and Satish Chandra Sharma, which overruled a previous Delhi High Court order that had denied bail to Khedkar.&nbsp;
The court held that the circumstances of the case justified bail, stating, &ldquo;Bearing in mind the facts and circumstances of the case, this is a fit case where the Delhi High Court ought to have granted bail to the petitioner.&rdquo;
The bench granted her protection from arrest and stipulated that in the event of her detention, she could be released on a cash surety of ₹35,000. Additionally, the court directed Khedkar to cooperate fully with the investigation.
During the proceedings, the court questioned the basis of the prosecution&rsquo;s claim that Khedkar had not been cooperating. Justice Nagarathna remarked, &ldquo;What is the meaning of &lsquo;not cooperating&rsquo;? She has not committed a murder&hellip; this is not a NDPS offence. She will cooperate.&rdquo;&nbsp;
The bench further commented, &ldquo;She is not a drug lord or a terrorist. She has not committed 302 (murder). She is not an NDPS offender. You should have a system or a software. You complete the investigation. She has lost everything and will not get a job anywhere.&rdquo;
The Delhi Police, represented by Additional Solicitor General S V Raju, strongly opposed the grant of bail. He argued that Khedkar&rsquo;s custodial interrogation was essential to uncover the full extent of what appeared to be a broader conspiracy. &ldquo;We have found this is a scam which may involve persons involved in giving certificates, etc. We want to investigate whether this is an isolated case or there is a larger number of cases,&rdquo; he stated.
Khedkar is accused of providing false documents to claim reservations meant for candidates belonging to the OBC and those with physical disabilities. These included additional attempts at the civil services examinations.&nbsp;
The UPSC had initiated criminal proceedings against her, alleging that she manipulated her identity to secure these advantages. An FIR was registered by the Delhi Police, citing offences including forgery and cheating.
Khedkar has denied all allegations and claimed she is being targeted because she filed a sexual harassment complaint against a senior official.&nbsp;
She maintained that her name had only undergone a minor alteration, specifically the middle name, stating, &ldquo;Therefore, there is no truth in the allegation that there has been a major change in my name.&rdquo;&nbsp;
She further asserted, &ldquo;UPSC verified my identity through biometric data... did not find my documents (to be) fake or incorrect...&rdquo;
In support of her disability claim, Khedkar submitted a certificate from a Maharashtra hospital which diagnosed her with an &ldquo;old ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) tear with left knee instability.&rdquo;
The Delhi High Court had earlier rejected her bail plea in December 2024, stating that the charges against her constituted a &ldquo;classic example of fraud committed not only on an authority but also the nation at large.&rdquo; The court also suggested that her family members may have colluded with unknown influential individuals to procure the fraudulent certificates, thereby broadening the scope of the investigation.
Her case had drawn attention in June 2024, when Pune Collector Suhas Diwase reported her conduct to Maharashtra Chief Secretary Sujata Saunik. Diwase noted that Khedkar had made unauthorised demands for a car, staff, and an office during her probation period&mdash;facilities not granted to officers under training. Following this, she was transferred to Washim.
Subsequent investigation led to the cancellation of her selection by the UPSC in August 2024, and in September, the Central government dismissed her from service. It was later discovered that her father, a retired Maharashtra government officer, possessed assets worth approximately ₹40 crore, thereby disqualifying her from eligibility under the OBC non-creamy layer category.&nbsp;
Furthermore, it was revealed that she had skipped a mandatory health examination at a government hospital required to verify her disability status.
This Supreme Court ruling marks the second instance of the apex court questioning the Delhi High Court&rsquo;s stance on Khedkar&rsquo;s bail. The first occurred in January 2025, when the court remarked, &ldquo;Having regard to nature of offences... bearing in mind circumstances... this is a fit case for grant of anticipatory bail.&rdquo;
In the same hearing, Justices Nagarathna and Sharma had noted that Khedkar had filed an affidavit assuring her cooperation with investigators. Interim protection from arrest had been granted to her in January, and the relief was extended during the hearing on March 18, 2025.
The investigation into the allegations against Puja Khedkar remains ongoing.
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Puja Khedkar gets anticipatory bail from Supreme Court amid allegations of quota fraud in UPSC examination.

Supreme Court Grants Bail to Ex-IAS Officer Khedkar

Puja Khedkar gets anticipatory bail from Supreme Court amid allegations of quota fraud in UPSC examination.

May 21, 2025 | 19:06 IST