Bengaluru, October 8, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) investigation into the alleged multi-crore Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC) recruitment scam has revealed that candidates who allegedly paid bribes for selection as veterinary officers were taken to resorts and Airbnb villas on the outskirts of Bengaluru a day before the examination and provided leaked question papers to memorise answers.
The ED said its investigation also found that certain KPSC members and officials allegedly misused confidential information from the 1:3 merit list to identify candidates likely to secure selection and demand bribes from them.
The agency made the revelations on Thursday while detailing its probe into the alleged cash-for-selection racket involving the KPSC Veterinary Officers’ Recruitment Examination for 400 posts.
The ED said it had arrested suspended KPSC Chairman Shivashankarappa Sahukar and KPSC Member B.V. Geetha in connection with the investigation, based on FIRs registered at Vidhana Soudha Police Station under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023.
The arrests followed custodial interrogations and investigation into alleged question paper leaks, malpractices and corruption in KPSC recruitment.
Both accused were produced before the Special Court for PMLA cases (CCH-4) on October 7. The court granted the ED 14 days of custody for further investigation.
According to the ED, 10 successful candidates were taken to a resort or Airbnb villa on the outskirts of Bengaluru one day before the examination. They were allegedly provided with a question paper containing the correct options for 80 questions and were made to practise and memorise them.
The agency alleged that the question paper containing the correct answers was leaked by then KPSC Controller of Examinations and IAS officer Gyanendra Kumar Gangwar through his close associate, BJP leader Basavaraj Kannale. The leaked material was allegedly supplied to the 10 candidates.
The ED further alleged that Kannale collected bribes ranging between Rs 40 lakh and Rs 50 lakh from each candidate in exchange for facilitating their final selection in the Veterinary Officers’ recruitment examination.
Based on evidence collected during the investigation, Gangwar and Kannale were arrested under Section 19 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) on September 18 and 17, respectively. The Special Court subsequently remanded them to ED custody for 14 days.
After his ED custody, Gangwar was remanded to judicial custody by the Special Court for PMLA cases in Bengaluru. During questioning, he allegedly disclosed information concerning irregularities in the conduct of various KPSC recruitment examinations, the ED said.
The agency said material seized from a KPSC official and enquiries with Gangwar indicated that certain KPSC members and officials allegedly exploited confidential information relating to the 1:3 merit list to persuade candidates to pay bribes by assuring them of selection.
The ED said KPSC generally does not disclose individual candidates’ marks while publishing the 1:3 eligibility list. However, certain members and officials allegedly accessed confidential merit positions from the Controller of Examinations’ office and analysed candidates’ chances of securing final selection.
The officials allegedly used this information to approach candidates and assure them of selection in exchange for illegal gratification.
The investigation further revealed that bribes ranging from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 50 lakh were allegedly demanded from candidates depending on the nature and level of the post.
The ED said the alleged misuse of confidential merit information to extract illegal gratification generated proceeds of crime.
Earlier searches and seizure operations by the agency resulted in the recovery of blank signed cheques worth Rs 80 lakh, along with blank signed promissory notes, from one of the successful candidates.
The ED said its investigation into the alleged recruitment irregularities, question paper leaks, bribery and generation of proceeds of crime is continuing.
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