The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in Bhubaneswar has officially launched an investigation into the multi-crore Odisha Police Sub-Inspector (SI) recruitment scam. The case was registered on Wednesday, and a senior officer of the rank of Additional Superintendent of Police has been assigned to lead the probe.
According to sources, the CBI has requested all case-related documents from the Crime Branch. The move follows a formal request by the Odisha government, after which the Union government issued a notification on November 11 transferring the inquiry to the CBI. The scam pertains to irregularities in the Combined Police Service Examination (CPSE) 2024, originally scheduled for October 5 and 6, 2025.
The scandal first came to light when Odisha Police intercepted three buses on the Odisha–Andhra Pradesh border on the night of September 29. A total of 114 aspirants and three middlemen were arrested, exposing a large-scale examination fraud.
The Crime Branch took over the case on October 1, 2025, registering a new case (7/2025) based on the initial FIR filed at Golanthara police station in Ganjam district. The Odisha Police Recruitment Board (OPRB) had assigned ITI Limited to conduct the CPSE-2024 examination, which was then subcontracted to Silicon Tech Private Limited. Silicon Tech further engaged Panchsoft Technologies Private Limited in Bhubaneswar—where the alleged mastermind, Sankar Prusty, served as a director—to manage crucial stages of the exam process.
So far, 126 individuals have been arrested, including Prusty and his associates Muna Mohanty, Srikanta Maharana (alias Rinku), and Arabinda Das.
During the probe, investigators detected possible links extending beyond Odisha to Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal, raising suspicions of an interstate organised criminal network. In light of these findings, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi recommended a CBI probe. The Centre subsequently directed the agency to take over the case.
