The Odisha Crime Branch has arrested Sankar Prusty, the alleged mastermind behind the state’s police sub-inspector (SI) recruitment scam, from Uttarakhand near the Nepal border after a weeks-long pursuit.
According to officials, a team led by DSP Anila Anand of the CID-Crime Branch tracked Prusty as he frequently changed locations to avoid capture. He was finally located near the Nepal border, produced before a local court, and is now being brought to Odisha on transit remand.
Prusty, the director of Panchsoft Technologies Pvt. Ltd. in Bhubaneswar, is accused of orchestrating the scam with several associates — Muna Mohanty, Srikanta Maharana (alias Rinku), Arabinda Das, T. Abhimanyu Dora, and Priyadarsini Samal.
The investigation revealed that ITI Limited, a central PSU responsible for conducting the examination under the Odisha Police Recruitment Board (OPRB), had subcontracted the job to Silicon Techlab, which further delegated parts of the work to Panchsoft Technologies. It was within this setup that Prusty allegedly manipulated the process.
After being brought to Bhubaneswar, Prusty denied any wrongdoing.
“I was not hiding. I was seeking legal remedies. I have faith in the judiciary and no connection with any of the other accused,” he told reporters, claiming he would expose those behind the exam’s cancellation.
The scam came to light when police intercepted three buses in Andhra Pradesh carrying 114 candidates heading to appear for the SI examination scheduled for October 5 and 6. Each candidate allegedly paid between Rs20–25 lakh, and the group had been promised leaked question papers for practice.
Police later arrested 123 people, including the candidates. While all candidates were recently granted bail, Prusty remained on the run until his arrest.
Given the scale of the scam, involving a network that extended beyond Odisha into West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh, the Odisha government has transferred the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi’s office stated that the decision was made to “completely root out corruption and ensure all culprits are brought to justice.”
