Bengaluru: The Karnataka Crime Investigation Department (CID) has arrested a key alleged middleman in the investigation into irregularities in the recruitment of 400 veterinary officers through the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC), widening a case that has already led to the arrest of an IAS officer.
Basavaraj Kannale was detained at the New Delhi airport on Sunday while he was reportedly preparing to travel to Uzbekistan. He was subsequently arrested and is expected to appear before a court in Bengaluru.
The arrest comes shortly after the CID arrested Karnataka-cadre IAS officer Gyanendra Kumar Gangwar, who served as KPSC’s controller of examinations from 2024 to March 2026. Investigators are examining the alleged links between Gangwar and Kannale as they try to establish how confidential examination information may have reached middlemen.
Why the Delhi arrest matters
According to police sources cited by The Indian Express, Kannale was allegedly attempting to leave India for Uzbekistan when CID officials detained him at Delhi airport.
Investigators suspect that he played the role of a middleman in an alleged conspiracy involving the veterinary officer recruitment examination conducted earlier this year.
The allegations are serious: candidates who had performed poorly in the examination were allegedly approached and offered the possibility of securing appointments in exchange for Rs 80 lakh, with an advance payment reportedly demanded in some cases.
The arrest could therefore help investigators establish how candidates were allegedly contacted and whether the suspected network extended into KPSC itself.
What candidates were allegedly offered
The recruitment examination for veterinary officer posts was conducted on January 8 and 9, 2026.
According to a complaint cited in court proceedings, KPSC published an eligibility list on February 12 but left out candidates’ addresses, telephone numbers and other personal details.
The complaint alleges that middlemen subsequently contacted candidates who had not qualified and offered to manipulate their OMR answer sheets and help them secure government appointments.
The alleged price was Rs 80 lakh, with Rs 40 lakh reportedly sought in advance and the remainder after the candidate secured the appointment. Some candidates are also said to have recorded audio and video of the alleged approaches and submitted the material to the authorities.
These allegations are part of the ongoing investigation and have not been established as proven facts against all those named or suspected.
The probe has already reached an IAS officer
Kannale’s arrest follows the arrest of IAS officer Gyanendra Kumar Gangwar on August 29.
Gangwar, a 2016-batch Karnataka-cadre IAS officer, was the KPSC controller of examinations during the period in which the alleged irregularities are believed to have occurred. He is currently posted as director of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in the state Commerce and Industries Ministry.
The CID has alleged that Gangwar was in frequent contact with Kannale.
Investigators are now examining whether those communications were connected to the alleged attempts to influence the recruitment process.
The case has consequently moved beyond allegations involving individual candidates and middlemen and into questions about the functioning of the examination system itself.
The OMR sheets could hold important answers
One of the most important parts of the investigation is the examination material.
The CID has seized hundreds of OMR answer sheets from selected candidates and is examining them for possible manipulation. The Indian Express reported that 329 OMR sheets and their carbon copies were seized for forensic analysis.
A separate court record says investigators had seized OMR sheets from selected candidates and were pursuing further forensic examination to determine whether malpractice or tampering had occurred.
The forensic findings could become crucial in determining whether answer sheets were altered and whether such alleged manipulation was part of a wider recruitment network.
Questions have also been raised over the question paper
The investigation is not limited to alleged OMR manipulation.
Complaints have also raised allegations that the examination question paper was leaked and that selected candidates may have received assistance before or during the examination.
A second complaint reportedly alleged that 29 candidates secured appointments through fraudulent means, including allegations involving prior access to examination material. Investigators are examining these claims as part of the wider probe.
The allegations have caused concern among candidates who competed through the regular examination process.
For genuine aspirants, recruitment examinations represent years of study and preparation. Any manipulation of a public examination can therefore have consequences far beyond the individuals directly involved.
Suspended KPSC chief also faces scrutiny
The investigation has also brought suspended KPSC chairman Shivashankarappa S Sahukar under scrutiny.
Sahukar has sought anticipatory bail in connection with the case. The Karnataka High Court recently declined to grant him immediate interim protection from arrest and gave the CID time to file its objections.
He has denied the allegations and argued that there is no direct allegation linking him to the alleged recruitment fraud. He has also described the case as politically motivated.
His suspension is also connected to a separate KPSC controversy involving the alleged recruitment of his daughter to a government post using a fake income certificate.
Political links add another layer
Kannale, who is from Bhalki in Bidar district, is a syndicate member of Tumakuru University and has been linked to the BJP in the district.
He has reportedly posted photographs with BJP leaders, although BJP Bidar unit leader Bhagwanth Khuba has said Kannale is not a BJP worker and is not associated with the party.
The alleged political connections have added another dimension to the investigation, although political association by itself does not establish involvement in the recruitment allegations.
The CID’s task now is to establish the evidence linking each individual to the alleged irregularities.
The investigation is far from over
The arrest at Delhi airport is another significant step in a case that has continued to widen.
With the alleged middleman now in custody, investigators are expected to examine his communications, financial transactions and possible interactions with candidates and officials.
The CID will also have to establish whether the alleged recruitment manipulation involved question-paper leakage, OMR tampering, confidential candidate information or a combination of these allegations.
The investigation has already reached senior officials and political circles, but the final responsibility of determining guilt will rest with the courts.
For thousands of candidates who depend on public recruitment examinations for government careers, the larger concern is clear: the credibility of the selection process must be protected.
As the CID follows the trail from the alleged middlemen to officials and candidates, the forensic evidence and subsequent investigation could reveal how far the suspected recruitment network actually reached.