Controversial trainee IAS officer Puja Khedkar refused to comment on the charges against her, but said she would give her answers to the committee formed by the government to probe her conduct and selection process.
Khedkar, who was recently transferred from Pune to Washim over her inappropriate demands, said she learnt about the formation of the one-member committee.
"If a committee is formed, I will present my side before the committee. I came to know from the media that a committee has been formed. So we should respect it. I will follow the process," she said in her first public remarks since the row erupted last week.
An additional secretary in the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) will enquire into the matter and submit a report within two weeks.
The Centre formed the panel amid allegations that she availed Other Backward Class (OBC) benefits as well as disability concessions to secure her position in the Indian Administrative Service (IAS).
Khedkar, a 2023-batch IAS officer of the Maharashtra cadre, claimed to be visually impaired in her affidavit to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).
She missed six medical tests to verify her disability in 2022 but later produced an MRI report from an external medical centre, which was accepted in 2023 after an eight-month delay.
Previously, Khedkar sparked controversy by requesting special privileges from the Pune Collector's office that were not permitted for her designation.
She also used her private Audi car with a red-blue beacon light and VIP number plate. She had also installed a 'Maharashtra government' board on her private car.
She will have to serve the rest of the probationary as super-numery assistant collector of Washim.
Source: India Today