Corruption in Bengaluru’s engineering admissions met its match with ED’s decisive asset attachment against BMS Educational Trust. Valued at ₹19.46 crore, the seized holdings mark a turning point in battling money laundering in education.
The Bengaluru Zonal Office targeted trustees’ assets—a strategic plot and pair of flats—on January 21, 2026, wielding PMLA powers. Triggered by local police complaints, the case unmasks a seat-blocking empire thriving on cash extortion.
Colleges under the trust, notably BMS College of Engineering, manipulated KEA processes to sell seats via shadowy intermediaries. Disguised as consultants, these agents extracted premiums in unrecorded cash, swelling coffers off-books.
2025 raids yielded ₹1.86 crore cash hauls and irrefutable trails of ₹20.20 crore undeclared income—via handwritten ledgers, chat logs, and insider testimonies. Funds flowed straight to trustees’ private ventures.
The human toll is stark: parents drained savings or borrowed heavily, while brighter students watched seats slip away to the highest bidders. It’s a stark indictment of quota abuses undermining meritocracy.
ED portrays the episode as emblematic of education sector vulnerabilities, ripe for exploitation. Further inquiries aim to expose accomplices and hidden assets.
As the net tightens, this action galvanizes calls for overhaul—mandatory audits, transparent quotas, and severe penalties. It reaffirms commitment to equitable opportunities in India’s competitive academic arena.