The Enforcement Directorate, on Sunday (August 23, 2026), raided the premises of IAS officer Gyanendra Kumar Gangwar in Bengaluru and Bareilly in connection with its money laundering investigation linked to alleged irregularities in an exam conducted by the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC), officials said.
Mr. Gangwar is a 2016-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer and is currently posted as Director-MSME in the Karnataka Department of Industries and Commerce.
He earlier served as the Controller of Examinations at the KPSC and was replaced in March this year.
Officials said Mr. Gangwar’s premises in Bengaluru and Uttar Pradesh’s Bareilly were searched under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). It was not immediately known if the officer was found by the central agency at the premises.
A controversy erupted on Saturday (August 22) after Mr. Gangwar was reported “missing” for a few hours. Later, Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge denied the reports and clarified that Mr. Gangwar was in his native place in Uttar Pradesh following a family emergency involving his father’s health.
The ED, on August 18, conducted the first round of searches in this case at the premises of the KPSC in Bengaluru, apart from those of former Chairman Shivashankarappa S. Sahukar, Member Shanta Hosmani and some others.
The probe is linked to a money laundering investigation into a Veterinary Officers recruitment exam ‘scam’.
Published – August 23, 2026 06:14 pm IST