Bengaluru: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted a search at the Bengaluru residence of Karnataka IAS officer Gnanendra Kumar in connection with alleged irregularities in the recruitment exam for veterinary doctors.
The Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC) held an examination in January to recruit 400 veterinary doctors. Complaints alleged that middlemen approached candidates and demanded bribes of Rs 70–80 lakh for securing jobs, with advances reportedly collected up to Rs 40 lakh.
A case was registered against former KPSC chairman Sivasankarappa Sahukar and others. After inputs suggesting illegal money transfers, the ED also began probing the matter and carried out searches last week at 21 locations, including Sivasankarappa’s premises and the KPSC office.
On Saturday afternoon, ED officials reached Gnanendra Kumar’s house, where he had served as the exam control officer during the test. The house was found locked and he was not present; officials arranged for a duplicate key-maker and opened the door in the presence of a neighbour as witness, recording the process on video.
The search continued into the night, though details of any seizures were not disclosed. Kumar, currently Director in the state’s Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises department, has been reported as missing, while Home Minister Priyank Kharge said he had gone to Uttar Pradesh to visit his father; reports also claimed he may have left after learning in advance about the raid.
