Police officials arrested in PSI recruitment scam face suspension

BENGALURU: The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has so far arrested over 33 successful candidates and three police officials, including one inspector and two officers of the rank of de puty superintendent of police (DSP), in the police sub-inspector (PSI) recruitment scam. Around 10 out of the 33 candidates arrested are serving policemen, including constables and head constables. All government officials under arrest now face the threat of suspension as per the government service and conduct rules.

“Serving government officials arrested and lodged in custody are deemed to have been suspended from service. The investigating agency is required to expeditiously send a report to the disciplinary authorities on their prima facie involvement in the criminal case,” said informed sources. Meanwhile, the CID on Wednesday obtained the custody of the four suspects in the scam after the court remanded them to CID custody for 10 days.

The investigating agency had arrested top scorer Darshan Gowda, head constable Harish HB, constables Mohan Kumar and Dileep Kumar recently for allegedly using fraudulent methods to clear the PSI recruitment exam, which was held on October 3 last year and the results were declared in January.
The optical marks recognition (OMR) sheets of Darshan, Harish, Mohan and Dileep were reportedly tampered with to help them get past the exam. The CID had arrested them following the verification of their OMR sheets by the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL).

Gowda had reportedly scored 141 out of 150 marks in the exam’s objective section, which was written on the OMR sheet. He was arrested on June 6 and the other three on June 5. The four were remanded to judicial custody after their arrest. The CID has arrested more than 65 people, including candidates, police officials, owners of the school in Kalaburagi and several middlemen in the scam since it took over the investigation in April on the direction of Home Minister Araga Jnanendra.