The Crime Branch of Odisha Police has arrested another associate of Sankar Prusty, the prime accused in the Odisha Police Sub-Inspector recruitment scam, marking another major step in the ongoing investigation.
The arrested individual, Sagar Kumar Gouda (22), a resident of Balipada in Ganjam district, was taken into custody for his alleged role in the large-scale organised criminal conspiracy to manipulate the Combined Police Service Examination (CPSE)-2024 through unfair means.
Police said that Gouda, currently residing at MKCG Medical Campus in Baidyanathpur, Berhampur, was a close aide of Prusty and managed the operations of the Balasore module, a crucial part of the scam network. Acting on Prusty’s instructions, Gouda reportedly coordinated logistics and supervised ground-level execution of the fraudulent plan.
Investigations revealed that Gouda had traveled to Digha, West Bengal, on September 29, where hotel accommodations were arranged by another accused, Aravinda Das, for candidates involved in the scam. Gouda was tasked with overseeing secret operations at Digha in direct coordination with Prusty.
So far, the Odisha Police have arrested 126 people, including Prusty and 114 aspiring candidates linked to the case. Prusty, who owns Panchsoft Technologies, a firm involved in conducting the recruitment test, has claimed that the scam was worth Rs1,000 crore and that he surrendered to expose the wider conspiracy.
In a major development, the Central Government, following a request from Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, has ordered a CBI probe into the multi-crore scam.
