IAS Officer Puja Khedkar's Audi Car, which had illegal red beacon, seized
Pune: Pune police on Sunday confiscated a luxury car used by controversial probationary IAS officer Puja Khedkar for allegedly installing a red beacon light on it illegally, according to an official.
The Pune Regional Transport Office (RTO) on Thursday issued a notice to a city-based private company, which is the registered owner of the Audi car that 34-year-old Khedkar used during her posting in Pune. The registered user’s address was listed as Shivane village in Haveli taluka.
Khedkar recently came under the spotlight after a controversy surrounding her demands for a separate cabin and staff during her posting in Pune. Additionally, she allegedly misused the disability and Other Backward Class (OBC) quota to secure a position in the Indian Administrative Service (IAS).
Khedkar is accused of using a red beacon light on the Audi car and having "Maharashtra Government" written on it without permission. Following the controversy, she was transferred from Pune to Washim district before the completion of her training.
"A notice was issued on Thursday against the unauthorized use of a beacon and name sign on the private sedan Khedkar had been using. The car has now been confiscated, its documents will be checked, and we are probing the matter further," a senior police official said on Sunday.
A jammer was put on the car, and barricades were installed around it, he added.
The Audi car, registered at the Pune RTO on June 27, 2012, has faced 21 challans with total charges of ₹27,000 for alleged traffic violations, all of which have been paid, as per officials.
As per Section 108 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules (CMVR) 1989, the state government can grant permission for the use of red or amber beacon lights on official vehicles to VIPs, VVIPs, and government officials. In December 2013, the state government revised the list of posts entitled to use beacons, based on Supreme Court directives, and published it in 2014.
The Centre has constituted a single-member committee "to verify the candidature" of the 2023-batch IAS officer of the Maharashtra cadre. An additional secretary-rank officer will conduct the probe to verify claims over Khedkar's candidature and other details. She may be terminated from service if found guilty, official sources said.
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SC refuses urgent hearing of plea challenging MCD notification on picking of stray dogs
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Thursday refused urgent listing of a plea challenging a notification issued by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi with regard to picking up of stray dogs.
A bench of Justices J K Maheshwari and Vijay Bishnoi declined to accord urgent hearing after a lawyer mentioned that an application has been filed in this regard.
The application submitted that MCD issued the notification despite orders having been reserved by the apex court.
The whole problem of stray dogs in Delhi-NCR is because of "inaction" of local authorities, the top court had said on August 14 while reserving its order on the interim prayer seeking a stay on the August 11 directions passed by the apex court.
A three-judge bench of Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and N V Anjaria had reserved its order in the matter.
A two-judge bench of Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan had on August 11 directed authorities in Delhi-NCR to start picking up stray dogs from all localities "at the earliest" and relocate the animals to dog shelters.
The bench had directed the authorities to immediately create dog shelters and report to it about the creation of such infrastructure within eight weeks.
It had said stray dogs would be detained in shelters and not be released on streets, colonies or public places.
The apex court had passed a slew of directions on August 11 while hearing a suo motu case initiated on July 28 over stray dog bites leading to rabies, particularly among children, in the national capital.
