A Bengaluru court on Monday remanded Indian Administrative Services (IAS) officer Gyanendra Kumar Gangwar and Basavaraj Kannale to 10 days of police custody in connection with their alleged role in irregularities related to the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC) recruitment of veterinary officers.
Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate KP Manjunatha passed the order after the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) sought custody of both accused for further investigation.
Gangwar was arrested by the CID late on Saturday night. He had served as the Controller of Examinations at the KPSC during the period relevant to the recruitment process.
According to the investigating agency, the arrest followed the alleged recovery of incriminating documents connected with the question paper of the examination conducted for recruitment to 400 veterinary officer posts.
The CID is probing allegations of large-scale manipulation in the recruitment process, including the alleged leakage of the examination question paper and tampering with Optical Mark Recognition (OMR) sheets.
It is also examining alleged financial transactions connected with the recruitment irregularities. Investigators are reportedly scrutinising bank transactions, properties and other assets allegedly linked to the accused and persons associated with the alleged racket.
Candidates who appeared for the examination had complained that the question paper was leaked to select candidates and that middlemen demanded amounts ranging between ₹70 lakh and ₹80 lakh from aspirants in return for helping them secure selection.
The allegations have raised questions over the integrity of the recruitment process conducted by the KPSC.
The CID also arrested Kannale, a Tumkur University syndicate member with BJP links, on Monday. He was arrested in Delhi, sources said. The investigating agency is examining allegations that Kannale acted as a middleman between candidates and influential persons allegedly involved in manipulating the recruitment process.
According to sources, Kannale had developed contacts with several political leaders after returning to Bengaluru following a stint in Delhi, where he had reportedly gone for UPSC coaching.