On Thursday, the Supreme Court issued a stay on a directive from the Karnataka High Court that mandated the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) composed of certain police officers to re-examine two cases of recruitment fraud within the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC). This decision followed an appeal from the state government.
The government contended that the high court established the SIT without identifying any shortcomings in the current investigations being conducted by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) regarding the cases. Senior counsel Kapil Sibal, representing the government, argued before Justices Manoj Mishra and Vijay Bishnoi, stating, “There has been no critique of the investigation, yet the judge chose to form an SIT. There are no grounds for this decision, and no adverse findings against the CID. On what basis were the officers selected?”
In a ruling dated September 21, the high court had ordered the creation of an SIT, led by Alok Kumar, the Director General of Prisons and Correctional Services in Karnataka, to investigate alleged fraud related to the recruitment of 400 veterinary doctors and the improper hiring of the suspended KPSC chairman Shivashankarappa Sahukar’s daughter in the state’s industries and commerce department.
The Supreme Court heard the state’s argument that the composition of the SIT had been made without prior consultation with the government. The court noted that the government challenged the high court’s decision, emphasizing that investigations into the cases were nearing completion and that there were no specific accusations against the CID, which was handling the investigations.
The court further commented, “Additionally, there are objections to the directive mandating a fresh investigation by the SIT. It’s argued that a new investigation is unnecessary, especially when there are no claims of misconduct against the current investigators.” The court also highlighted concerns regarding several SIT members, who the government claimed had previously faced allegations of abusing their authority.
The Supreme Court also halted the mandate for renewed investigations into the KPSC recruitment scams. “For now, the orders in paragraphs 34 (i) and (ii) will remain on hold. By the next hearing, the state is required to submit a sealed document outlining any objections to the SIT members as per the high court’s directive and may propose alternative candidates for the SIT,” the court stated.
The SIT was originally set to include IPS officers Divya Gopinath, Anup A. Shetty, Kushal Chouksey, and Kshama Mishra, as specified in the high court’s order.
The high court had expressed concerns about the CID or local police investigating the cases, particularly with the suspended KPSC chairman implicated. “Given the unique circumstances of these cases, I do not find it suitable to allow the CID or local police to conduct the investigations. I am also not convinced that assigning the investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation is the only feasible solution. Therefore, I believe it is appropriate to form a special investigation team,” the court remarked in its ruling.
However, the Supreme Court cautioned that the formation of the SIT might disrupt the ongoing investigations. “The issue is that a new investigation implies that the entire prior investigation is disregarded. If there are concerns regarding the newly constituted SIT, and the case files are transferred to them, the integrity of the previous work could be compromised,” the court noted.
The court acknowledged that if a regular pattern of misconduct was evident, especially involving high-ranking officials, then establishing an SIT could be justified.
In the case involving the veterinary exam fraud, the CID has detained former KPSC exam controller Gyanendra Kumar Gangwar, 41, an IAS officer, for allegedly leaking exam questions to approximately 20 candidates via a middleman, Basavaraj Kannale, who is associated with the Opposition BJP. Kannale purportedly collected bribes ranging from Rs 20 to 40 lakh from these students, and investigations revealed that around Rs 52 lakh of the bribes were utilized to purchase jewelry for a friend of Gangwar.
In the second case, the daughter of the suspended KPSC chairman is accused of submitting a counterfeit income certificate claiming annual family earnings of Rs 40,000 to secure a position as an industrial extension officer under the OBC reservation category.
