KPSC jobs racket: ED to probe Sahukar’s receipt of Rs 4 crores in cash in four months

The Enforcement Directorate, or ED, is India’s central agency for investigating suspected financial crimes, including money laundering. Here, it is examining alleged cash collections and transfers connected to a recruitment racket involving the Karnataka Public Service Commission. The investigation matters because public-service jobs may have been exchanged for bribes, undermining a merit-based hiring system.

The ED searched the home of Dayananda, a Commission employee associated with Sahukar. It found handwritten sheets that allegedly recorded cash collections of Rs 99.76 lakh each month from August through December 2025. The notes also recorded later transfers made in installments to Sahukar. The agency said the money’s source had not yet been explained.

Sahukar denied the cash dealings described in the records. The ED told the special court that this denial, the unidentified source of the funds, and links to candidates willing to pay required further investigation. Sahukar was remanded to judicial custody, and his interim medical bail request was rejected.

Investigators allegedly discovered a paper trail connecting Dayananda, a Commission employee, to cash collections and transfers involving suspended KPSC chairman Shivashankarappa S Sahukar. The ED said Dayananda was an associate of Sahukar and had kept sheets describing accounts of cash transactions. Those records became a basis for seeking further investigation against the arrested chairman.

According to the agency, the notes showed Rs 99.76 lakh being collected monthly from August through December 2025. The collected money was allegedly transferred to Sahukar in separate installments rather than in one payment. The total collected during that period was reported as more than Rs 4 crore.

The source of the cash had not been revealed. Sahukar denied the dealings described in Dayananda’s notes. The ED said the unexplained origin of the money, combined with the alleged transfers and recruitment links, needed investigation. The court then continued Sahukar’s detention in judicial custody.

The alleged cash collections covered five months, from August through December 2025. The ED told a special court that more than Rs 4 crore was collected during this period by an associate of suspended KPSC chairman Shivashankarappa S Sahukar. The records were found during a search of Dayananda’s residence.

The reported monthly figure was Rs 99.76 lakh. That amount was allegedly collected each month, according to notes recovered by investigators. The records also described subsequent transfers of the money to Sahukar in installments. The article does not specify the exact amount transferred in each installment or explain any difference between the monthly figures and the total described as over Rs 4 crore.

The scale matters because the alleged payments were tied to a public recruitment process. The ED said the source of the cash remained undisclosed and Sahukar denied the dealings. Investigators therefore sought more time and evidence to trace the money and establish how it was used.

The ED found sheets of paper during a search of Dayananda’s home. Dayananda was a Commission employee associated with Sahukar. The sheets allegedly detailed money collected and distributed, including monthly cash collections and later transfers to Sahukar. The agency presented these records to the special court as grounds for continuing its investigation.

The notes reportedly recorded Rs 99.76 lakh collected each month from August to December 2025. They also described transfers to Sahukar in installments. The ED said the source of the more than Rs 4 crore remained unknown. Sahukar denied the cash transactions indicated by the associate’s records.

Tracing the source could help investigators determine whether the money came from candidates, intermediaries, or another channel. It could also show whether the cash was linked to alleged bribes for KPSC jobs. The article does not state that investigators have established the source or proven the alleged transfers. It reports that the issue still required investigation.

The alleged racket connected candidates seeking government jobs with KPSC officials through an associate of Sahukar. The ED said this associate introduced the chairman to candidates who were willing to pay for recruitment through the Commission. This describes an alleged intermediary role between job seekers and officials involved in the recruitment process.

The agency cited two examples. One candidate allegedly paid Rs 1.25 crore for recruitment into the Karnataka Administrative Services. Another allegedly paid Rs 30 to be recruited as an assistant engineer in a government department. The article does not clarify the unit attached to the second figure, so it is reported exactly as stated.

The alleged exchange involved money for access or recruitment outcomes. Separately, the ED said KPSC members leaked answer keys for as many as 13 examinations in exchange for bribes. Sahukar and B V Geetha allegedly leaked keys to six to nine candidates in a veterinary officers’ recruitment exam held in January this year.

The special court remanded suspended KPSC chairman Shivashankarappa S Sahukar and KPSC member B V Geetha to judicial custody until October 25. This means they remained in court-ordered custody while the investigation and related legal proceedings continued. The article identifies both as arrested or facing proceedings in connection with the alleged recruitment racket.

Sahukar sought interim bail on medical grounds, but the court rejected that request. His bail hearing was also to proceed along with Geetha’s bail matter, according to the report. Geetha filed an interim bail plea, but the court did not decide it immediately.

Geetha’s interim bail plea was posted for hearing on Friday. The article also says a bail hearing for the suspended chairman was scheduled with it. These are procedural developments, not findings of guilt. The reported allegations include cash transfers, candidate introductions, and answer-key leaks. Sahukar denied the cash dealings described in the recovered notes.

The Karnataka Public Service Commission, or KPSC, is the state body involved in recruiting people for government service through competitive examinations. Its exams help select candidates for roles such as Karnataka Administrative Services posts, veterinary officers, and assistant engineers. The article identifies the Commission as the route through which candidates allegedly sought government jobs.

Fair exams depend on candidates receiving the same information and competing under the same rules. The ED said KPSC members leaked answer keys for as many as 13 exams in exchange for bribes. It also alleged that Sahukar and B V Geetha leaked keys to six to nine candidates in a veterinary officers’ recruitment exam held in January this year.

If such allegations are proved, they could damage confidence in government recruitment and disadvantage honest candidates. They could also affect the quality and legitimacy of public administration. The article reports an ongoing investigation, not final findings. Sahukar denied the recorded cash dealings, while the court continued custody and bail proceedings.