The Karnataka government suspended IAS officer Gyanendra Kumar Gangwar on Thursday following his arrest by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in connection with an alleged fraud involving the selection of veterinarians for 400 vacancies in the state’s Animal Husbandry and Fisheries department.

Background

Gangwar, who is from Uttar Pradesh and belongs to the Karnataka-cadre IAS of the 2016 batch, was serving as the Director for the Department of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in the state’s Commerce and Industries ministry. At the time of the alleged fraud, he was the Controller of Examinations at the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC).

Arrest and Suspension

According to a report submitted to the government, the CID’s Director General of Police stated that Gangwar was produced before the jurisdictional magistrate and remanded to judicial custody on August 30. He was later taken into police custody for further investigation.

The state government decided to suspend him due to the serious nature of the allegations concerning the integrity, transparency, and fairness of the recruitment process conducted by the KPSC. The order stated: