A major recruitment malpractice probe into the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC) has laid bare serious institutional lapses within the state's examination system. The investigation, spearheaded by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of Karnataka, focuses on the manipulation of recruitment drives and question paper compromises under the state administration.

As initially reported by The Indian Express, the agency's findings show that 14 candidates who secured top ranks in the examination held on January 9, 2026, obtained their positions by accessing leaked question papers beforehand.

The Forensic Evidence and Probability Analysis

The examination was conducted to recruit veterinary doctors and featured two distinct test papers delivered in a multiple-choice question format. To verify suspicions of fraud, investigators applied a forensic statistical probability test to scrutinize the response patterns of the suspected examinees.

The forensic evaluation uncovered an improbable correlation: 99.9% of the marked answers on the response sheets of these top-ranking candidates were identical, matching across both correct selections and identical incorrect errors. In investigative metrics, a matching rate exceeding 95% among suspect examinees serves as definitive, actionable proof of coordinated cheating. Based on this statistical proof, the CID confirmed that all 14 top rank-holders had illicitly received the examination paper in advance.

Furthermore, the statistical model revealed that at least three candidates had likely obtained advance access to the general proficiency paper—one of the two mandatory test components. One of those three individuals was traced directly to the top leadership of the commission.

Middlemen, Money Trails, and Administrative Arrests

The illicit operation functioned through an established ring of insiders and commercial brokers. According to the investigation, middleman Basavaraj Kannale operated as the primary conduit, extracting bribes totaling ₹1.52 crore from 11 separate candidates in direct exchange for the leaked material.

The leak inside the commission was engineered by KPSC Exam Controller Gynanendra Kumar Gangwar. Following evidence of his direct involvement, law enforcement authorities arrested Gangwar in August. Just days later, the CID apprehended middleman Kannale.

The case broadened significantly when investigators discovered the direct complicity of KPSC Chairman Shivashankarappa S. Sahukar, formally implicating him as a co-conspirator. In July, an initial First Information Report (FIR) was registered naming Sahukar, several senior officials, and 29 candidates selected in the veterinary doctors' recruitment list. Sahukar was accused of conspiring hand-in-glove with Gangwar to compromise the integrity of the test material. Subsequent forensic surveillance disclosed that Sahukar and his son maintained frequent communication with middleman Kannale using encrypted internet phone calls to avoid standard wiretaps.

Sahukar was concurrently implicated in another illegal recruitment case concerning the fraudulent appointment of his daughter as an Industrial Extension Officer, leading to his eventual suspension.

Warning Signs Ignored and Regulatory Paralysis

The systemic breakdown within the KPSC had operated unchecked over multiple years under the administration. Since 2023, following the current government's assumption of office, numerous senior bureaucrats and civil service officials repeatedly sounded alarms regarding institutional malpractice, mark withholding, answer-sheet tampering, interview score rigging, and widespread procedural bypasses. However, the administration declined to act on these red flags, choosing instead to shield Sahukar from oversight.

The conflict came to a head when IAS officer Vikas Suralkar, who had been serving as KPSC Secretary since July 2022, attempted to implement transparency safeguards. Suralkar introduced measures including official social media channels and publishing detailed hiring schedules and candidate statistics on the public website. Sahukar pushed back, bypassing the secretary during institutional meetings and deliberately sitting on critical administrative files.

Sahukar eventually lodged a formal complaint against the secretary. In response, Suralkar submitted a comprehensive report that documented major structural loopholes and explicitly warned that “departures from the rules” had created an environment for the “misuse of authority by the Chairperson and injustice to meritorious candidates.”

Rather than investigating the issues outlined in the report, the state government removed Suralkar from his post as KPSC Secretary the very next day. His successor, IAS officer Latha Kumari, encountered the same administrative resistance in December 2023 when she declined to sign off on a controversial appointment within the commission's legal cell. In the meantime, Sahukar's activities continued without disruption under the state government's tacit protection.

Judicial Interventions and Police Reassignments

Accountability was ultimately driven by the courts rather than executive oversight. The Karnataka High Court intervened directly, ordering the formation of an independent Special Investigation Team (SIT) to examine both parallel cases: the veterinary doctors' examination leak and the fraudulent appointment of Sahukar’s daughter.

The state government resisted the court-ordered oversight, moving the Supreme Court of India to challenge the High Court's directive on the grounds that the SIT members were designated without prior government consultation. Most recently, the state government transferred IPS officer Kushal Chouksey, who was actively serving on the court-ordered SIT untangling the recruitment network.