BJD demands CBI probe into Odisha Police SI recruitment Scam, holds protest in Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar, Oct 6 (UNI) Hundreds of activists from the Biju Yuva Janata Dal (BYJD) and Biju Chhatra Janata Dal (BCJD), the youth and student wings of Biju Janata Dal (BJD) staged a protest near the busy Master Canteen area in Bhubaneswar today, demanding a CBI investigation into the alleged Odisha Police Sub-Inspector (SI) recruitment scam.

Holding placards and shouting slogans against the BJP government, the protesters clashed with police after breaking barricades in an attempt to march toward the Assembly.

The demonstrators then burned effigies of the Chief Minister and cabinet ministers, reiterating their demand for a CBI probe. The police subsequently detained the activists and cleared the roads.

Senior BJD leader and former minister Pritiranjan Ghadei alleged that the state government is using the Crime Branch investigation to protect top officials and party leaders involved in the scam.

He claimed that while brokers and students are being arrested, the “big fish” are being spared, insisting that only a CBI probe can reveal the full extent of the scam involving both BJP leaders and senior police officers.
Ghadei added that the recruitment scam has left Odisha’s youth frustrated and disillusioned, and accused the government of orchestrating the sale of SI jobs through outsourcing.
He warned that the BJD would intensify agitation across the state until a CBI investigation is ordered.

Biju Yuva Janata Dal president Chinmay Sahu alleged that the BJP deliberately created communal tension in Cuttack to divert attention from the SI recruitment scam, which he described has become a national issue.
He accused senior ministers and police officials of being involved in the multi-crore scam and criticised the Chief Minister for announcing a major project in poll-bound Nuapada while unrest prevailed in Cuttack.

The Odisha government has already ordered a Crime Branch probe into the SI recruitment examination scam.

The ruling BJP and opposition BJD remain at loggerheads, each accusing the other of complicity.

BJP Yuva Morcha president Abhilash Panda alleged that two of those arrested by the Crime Branch belong to the BJD and asserted that the government is determined to bring all the accused to justice.
While the BJD insists on a CBI investigation, Congress and CPM have called for a judicial probe by a sitting judge.