A NAVI Mumbai court Wednesday rejected the anticipatory bail plea of absconding accused Dilip Khedkar, father of sacked IAS officer Puja Khedkar, in the case over alleged abduction of the helper of a truck. Earlier, his wife Manorama Khedkar, who had also been named as an accused, got anticipatory bail from the Navi Mumbai court on September 30. The Navi Mumbai police have already arrested Khedkar’s driver who was also involved in the case. On September 13, a concrete mixer truck allegedly brushed past the Khedkars’ car at a traffic junction on the Mulund-Airoli Road. Dilip, who has unsuccessfully contested state Assembly and Lok Sabha elections in the past, and his driver allegedly had an altercation with truck driver Chandrakumar Chavan and the helper, Prahlad Kumar, 22. The two men then allegedly forced Kumar into their vehicle, saying they were taking him to the police station. Chavan kept calling Kumar on his phone, but there was no reply, following which a kidnapping case was registered at Rabale police station based on a complaint by Vilas Dherange, the truck owner. Since then, Dilip Khedkar has been on the run. The SUV was registered in the name of Puja’s mother, Manorama. It was she who initially tried to prevent the Navi Mumbai police team from entering their house. Last year, the Centre had dismissed Puja from the IAS after the Union Public Service Commission cancelled her selection as she was found guilty of cheating and wrongly availing Other Backward Classes and disability quota benefits.
