KEA orders probe into suspicions of malpractice by VAO exam candidate

A view of the Karnataka Examinations Authority at Malleswaram in Bengaluru.

The Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA) has ordered an investigation into suspicions raised on social media over how a candidate from Haveri district, who scored only 25 out of 100 in the Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP) constable examination, secured 151 out of 200 marks in the Village Administrative Officer (VAO) recruitment examination and emerged as the district topper. Both examinations were conducted by KEA.

KEA Executive Director H. Prasanna has written to the Haveri Deputy Commissioner, who is also the District Chief Examination Superintendent, directing him to examine CCTV footage from the examination centre, conduct a comprehensive inquiry into whether any irregularities occurred, and submit a report. He has also instructed the authorities to file a police complaint, if necessary.

The VAO examination was held on October 4, at an examination centre in Shiggaon, Haveri district, where the candidate in question, Shankar Bannur, appeared. “Questions have been raised on social media about how a candidate with a reportedly unremarkable academic background could secure such high marks. Many people have expressed suspicions of corruption. The decision to investigate was taken to address these doubts,” Mr. Prasanna said.

According to information available with KEA, the candidate who submitted the application personally attended the examination. This was also verified through facial recognition technology. The OMR answer sheet issued to the candidate was found to be in order. Further, the same OMR sheet was scanned on October 5, and uploaded to the KEA website.

However, the Deputy Commissioner has been asked to examine whether any irregularities occurred at the Shiggaon examination centre and submit a report, he said.

The candidate passed II PUC in 2013. At the time of applying for the VAO post, this information matched the online database of the Department of School Education and Literacy (Pre-University). However, KEA server records show that the same candidate had entered 2026 as the year of passing in his KSRP application, indicating that the year had been altered, Mr. Prasanna explained.

“If any irregularities have occurred despite the several measures put in place to prevent malpractice and corruption, the investigation will help uncover them and enable strict legal action, if necessary,” he said.