Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel H.D. Kumaraswamy on Sunday, 30 August launched a sharp attack on the Karnataka government and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over alleged irregularities in Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC) recruitments, demanding that Gandhi visit Bengaluru and engage directly with affected candidates. The remarks came in the wake of the arrest of IAS officer Gyanendra Kumar in connection with the KPSC recruitment scam.

Kumaraswamy Challenges Rahul Gandhi

Addressing the media at Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) headquarters, J.P. Bhavan, in Bengaluru, Kumaraswamy directly called out the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha. 'Rahul Gandhi ji, where are you? Your KPSC is rotting. You travel across the country engaging with students and youngsters. When will you come to Bengaluru and hold talks with the victims of the KPSC irregularities? Let us see,' he said.

He repeated the challenge multiple times, urging Gandhi to sit face-to-face with young people affected by the alleged recruitment controversies. 'Bring him to Bengaluru once. Let him sit with the youngsters and engage with them on KPSC. Then the truth will come out,' Kumaraswamy said.

Attack on Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge

Kumaraswamy also took aim at Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge, alleging a failure to address problems within his own administration. 'Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge speaks about the RSS every morning, but apparently cannot spot the mess in his own department,' he said. He alleged that candidates who did not merit selection had reportedly been given appointments through compromised examinations, and questioned whether the Congress-led state government was genuinely capable of cleaning up the KPSC.

Allegations Over KPSC Chairman Appointment

The Union Minister alleged that the Karnataka government had appointed a person with a controversial record at the Bengaluru Development Authority (BDA) as KPSC Chairman in the name of reform. 'You once claimed that you would clean up the system and then brought a person who had already faced allegations of wrongdoing in BDA and made him the KPSC Chairman. Under his tenure, posts were allegedly put up for sale for crores of rupees,' Kumaraswamy alleged.

He also questioned the state government's announced target of filling 75,000 government vacancies, asking whether those appointments would also be made through alleged irregularities.

Question Paper Leak Allegations

Kumaraswamy further alleged that question papers for the Assistant Executive Engineers-Grade I recruitment in the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department were taken to resorts and provided to candidates who had allegedly paid money. 'Question papers were allegedly taken to resorts and given to candidates who paid money. They were even trained on how to write the answers,' he said, adding that the Karnataka government appeared reluctant to acknowledge the alleged irregularities publicly.

What Happens Next

The arrest of IAS officer Gyanendra Kumar has intensified political pressure on the Karnataka government. With Kumaraswamy escalating his offensive and the opposition demanding accountability, the Congress administration is likely to face mounting scrutiny over the KPSC scam as investigations continue.