Pune: In a shocking twist to an alleged road rage incident, a 22-year-old truck driver abducted in Navi Mumbai was rescued from the residence of former IAS probationer Puja Khedkar in Pune, officials said on Monday. The episode has sparked fresh scrutiny into Khedkar and her family, already under the scanner for multiple controversies.

The incident occurred on Saturday evening on the Mulund-Airoli road, when truck driver Prahlad Kumar's concrete mixer vehicle brushed against a sports utility vehicle (SUV). A heated argument ensued, following which two occupants of the SUV forcibly took Kumar into their vehicle, claiming they were taking him to a police station. Instead, they drove off toward Pune.

Victim traced to controversial ex-IAS officer's home

The Navi Mumbai police tracked the SUV to a bungalow in Pune belonging to Puja Khedkar, a former IAS probationer already facing allegations of faking OBC and disability status to secure her UPSC selection.

When officers from Navi Mumbai’s Rabale Police Station reached the bungalow on Sunday, Puja Khedkar’s mother, Manorama Khedkar, allegedly obstructed them from entering and got into a quarrel. Despite the resistance, police managed to rescue the driver and bring him back to Navi Mumbai.

"A team from Rabale police station had come in connection with the case of kidnapping of a truck driver, who was traced to Manorama Khedkar's bungalow in Pune. When the police team reached her bungalow for the investigation, she did not cooperate with them and allegedly obstructed them from discharging their duties," Pune's Chatushrungi police station's senior inspector Uttam Bhajanawale said.

Pune police have now registered a separate case against Manorama Khedkar under Section 221 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for obstructing a public servant from performing official duties.

Ongoing investigations & Khedkar's growing legal troubles

The Rabale police have registered a case of kidnapping under Section 137(2) of BNS and are working to identify the SUV occupants and uncover the motive behind the abduction. A notice has also been issued to Manorama Khedkar to appear for questioning.

Puja Khedkar, who was dismissed from IAS probation, is already facing multiple probes, including a Delhi Police FIR and a UPSC inquiry, for allegedly faking disability and caste status to secure her exam attempts and posting.

This is not the first time Manorama Khedkar has been in the headlines. Last year, she was arrested for threatening a farmer, with a video of the incident going viral. She was later released on bail.

PTI inputs