PUNE: Trainee IAS Agent Puja Khedkarembroiled in a controversy over the legitimacy of her certificates, secured MBBS admission at Shrimati Kashibai Navale Medical College and General Hospital, Pune in 2007 under the Nomadic Tribes Category-3 by furnishing a non-creamy layer OBC certificate, the college principal Arvind Bhore said Saturday.
Khedkar got admission through the Association of Management of Unaided Private Medical and Dental Colleges of Maharashtra (AMUPMDC) entrance test with a score of 146 out of 200, Bhore said. The AMUPMDC no longer exists after the introduction of NEET.
Khedkar is facing multiple investigations for submitting a non-creamy layer certificate to the UPSC, despite owning assets worth at least Rs 17 crore, including family gifts. Her selection in the reference disabled category is also under review.
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According to Bhore, it was the first batch of the medical college when Khedkar joined the faculty. “Khedkar had also attempted the Maharashtra Common Entrance Test for medical admissions. But her AMUPMDC score was higher than the state CET. She had furnished a non-creamy layer certificate of NT-3 category from the Vanjari community at the time of admission. We verified all the documents at the time of submission and found that they were genuine government documents,” Bhore said.
Khedkar Non-Creamy Layer Certificate was issued by Pathardi Sub Division Office in Ahmednagar in 2007. Her caste and disability certificates were also issued by the same office, according to college records. Bhore mentioned that she had not submitted any disability certificate at the time of admission.
When TOI contacted Khedkar, her mobile phone was switched off. She had not responded to text messages either till the time of going to press.
University records show that Khedkar scored 83% in Class 10 and 74% in Class 12 state board examinations. She completed her medical degree in 2011-12 after completing her studies and internship at the Naval College. During her internship, she was posted in the department of community medicine.
“Her conduct was good and she passed all her semesters with ease while her internship at the hospital was also completed on time,” Bhore said.
