A major scam appears to be brewing at the Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF) as it prepares to fill hundreds of vacancies in its administrative staff for the first time in nine years amid allegations that recruitment norms are being flouted to favour some candidates. Based on a tip off from whistleblowers in the country's second largest dairy cooperative, TNM visited the KMF corporate office in Bengaluru where recruitments were going on. The job aspirants gathered there revealed that their interview scores were being withheld. This lack of transparency has raised fears that the selection process is being manipulated behind the scenes.
Officials in KMF with knowledge of the recruitment process also alleged that reservation rules, which protect the interests of communities under the SC/ST and OBC categories, were not being followed and large sums of money was being exchanged for job postings in the dairy cooperative.
Recruitments for jobs in the cooperative are being held just months before the Karnataka Assembly elections this year and the allegations come at a time when the ruling BJP is being accused of plotting to merge KMF with Amul. Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s statement in January this year about “KMF and Amul working together” sparked widespread backlash from farmers in the state as well as the regional Janata Dal (Secular) party, which has historically held sway in KMF.
KMF, which manages the popular dairy brand Nandini, and has an annual turnover of Rs 25,000 crore, is a large cooperative network of milk production, processing, and distribution that serves 26 lakh farmers in the state.
The latest round of recruitments in KMF began in October 2022 with interested candidates invited to apply for 487 posts in the cooperative. This included posts ranging from Deputy Director to clerical jobs like lab assistants. Over 2000 candidates were shortlisted for positions in KMF through a written exam in December and an interview process, which began on February 2, continued till February 28.
But candidates appearing for recruitment have raised alarm about the lack of transparency in the information given to candidates about their scores. “Those of us who have been shortlisted for interviews know only our written examination scores. We are not aware of the final score after the personal interview is held. The scores we are given in the interview round should be made public like they are in other state government recruitment processes ,” said a candidate speaking to TNM on the condition of anonymity.
The candidate explained that the scores in the interview round are crucial to gain employment into the daily cooperative. “The written examination was for a total of 200 marks but it is given only 85% weightage in our final score. The interview round is given 15% weightage,” the candidate said. “I have faith I have done well in the examination but my recruitment is now up to the interview scores. It is left in their hands,” the candidate added.
An official in KMF further raised concerns that reservation is not being followed in the recruitment process. As per rule 3.3.2 in KMF’s Subsidiary Rules published in 1996, recruitments to posts in KMF must adhere to reservation rules set by the state government. “In case of direct recruitment, if it is by a competitive examination, after giving adequate publicity, the authority may determine the order of merit subject to reservation from the list of candidates prepared by the selection committee or expert panel,” the rule 3.3.2 of the recruitment rules stated.
However, officials with knowledge of the recruitment process, alleged that this rule was not being followed and there was no representative of the Social Welfare Department in the recruitment process. “With elections coming up, it is an opportunity to recruit people who are politically connected and there are large sums of money being offered for securing a job in KMF” said an official in KMF.
TNM has reached out to BC Satish, Managing Director of KMF asking about the allegations. This story will be updated if he responds.
A police case registered in Bengaluru in January 2023 alleged that money up to Rs 20 lakh were being offered in exchange for an entry-level job in KMF. Inquiries by the police revealed that a conman Prakash Munivenkatappa, a resident of Doddagubbi in Bengaluru, used a fake recruitment letter from the Secretary, DPAR, Vidhana Soudha, complete with the forged signature and seal of the Director (Administration) of KMF, to extort money from an interested candidate looking to secure a technician’s role in KMF. In August last year, police investigated an elaborate recruitment scam in which 140 people were tricked into believing they had received a job posting in KMF.
A source in KMF said that during the current recruitment process, many shortlisted candidates had received similar phone calls demanding money in exchange for securing a job in the cooperative. “In some cases, the calls were made by representatives of boards of directors (in KMF) or politicians. The sums offered were as high as Rs 60 lakh,” the official said. “The interview scores of shortlisted candidates are being manipulated to prefer those who have offered to pay bribes,” the official alleged.
KMF comprises 16 milk producer unions which feed off primary dairy cooperative societies that are present at the taluk and village level. There are over 15,000 village level cooperative dairies in the state. “Even in remote places where a transport bus may still not go, a milk van goes every morning,” said an official working with KMF.
KMF milk, sold under its brand name of Nandini fetches farmers Rs.29 per litre (its market price goes up to Rs 44). Farmers are paid Rs 24 by their district milk unions and Rs. 5 by the Karnataka government. The various milk unions pay a commission to KMF for each litre of milk bought from farmers. The daily procurement levels are currently at 84 lakh litres.
Political observers say the money and the rural access of KMF are too huge to be ignored during elections.
KMF is a contested body with elections to the post of chairmanship within KMF often becoming fierce contests. The chairman is voted in by the board of directors in KMF comprising the 16 heads of the various milk unions in the state and four others - the managing director of KMF, the regional head of the National Dairy Development Board and two IAS officers.
The political alliances of those in the board of directors is often clear. For instance, the board has Amarnath Jarkiholi, son of BJP legislator Ramesh Jarkiholi, and Maruthi Kashempur, brother of JD(S) legislator Bandeppa Kashempur.
The current chairman of KMF is the BJP legislator Balachandra Jarkiholi who was elected in 2020. This is only the second time that the post is being held by a powerful BJP-linked family. In the past, BJP legislator G Somashekar Reddy, the brother of tainted mining baron Janardhana Reddy was chairman of KMF.
The BJP was successful in wresting control of KMF from JD(S) legislator HD Revanna, whose own fortunes have been intertwined with the politics of KMF for the last three decades. Revanna was the chairman of the cooperative for 18 years until 2009 and is currently on the board of KMF heading the Hassan Milk Union.
He made a bid to return as the chairman as recently as in 2020. He was then accused of keeping at least four directors hostage in a resort, fearing that they would support his rivals. He ultimately conceded defeat to Balachandra Jarkiholi.
Despite the setback, Revanna and the JD(S), a party that espouses the cause of farmers in the state, retains a keen interest in protecting its stakes in KMF. ““It is one of the government bodies that provides jobs to Kannadigas. We have made it one of our main issues in the run-up to the elections,” Prathap Kanagal, a JD(S) leader from Hassan, said. “We are highlighting to our voters how jobs of Kannadigas will be taken away if KMF is merged with Amul,” he said.