BENGALURU: The Enforcement Directorate on Sunday searched the premises of IAS officer Gyanendra Kumar Gangwar in Bengaluru and Bareilly in connection with its money laundering probe into alleged irregularities in an examination conducted by the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC), officials said.Gangwar, a 2016-batch Indian Administrative Service officer, is currently posted as Director-MSME in the Karnataka Department of Industries and Commerce.He had earlier served as Controller of Examinations at the KPSC and was replaced from the post in March this year, PTI reported.Officials said the searches at Gangwar’s premises in Bengaluru and Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh were carried out under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).It was not immediately clear whether the officer was present at either location when the searches were conducted.A controversy had erupted on Saturday after Gangwar was reported “missing” for a few hours.Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge later dismissed the reports and said Gangwar was in his native place in Uttar Pradesh following a family emergency related to his father’s health.The latest searches come days after the ED conducted its first round of searches in the case on August 18. The agency searched the KPSC office in Bengaluru, besides the premises of former chairman Shivashankarappa S Sahukar, member Shanta Hosmani and some others.The probe is linked to a money laundering investigation into an alleged scam in the recruitment examination for veterinary officers.(With agency inputs)