CBI Cracks Down: Bihar Man Held in Odisha SI Scam
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has intensified its probe into the Odisha Police Sub‑Inspector (SI) recruitment scam, arresting Nitish Kumar from Bihar and bringing him to Bhubaneswar for interrogation.
Nitish Kumar, alleged to have trained nearly 600 aspirants, is considered a close associate of mastermind Biranchi Nayak.
CBI officials subjected him to marathon questioning at their Bhubaneswar office, seeking details of the racket’s operations.
Investigations reveal that the recruitment process was subcontracted through multiple layers—from Kolkata’s ITI to Hyderabad’s Silicon Techlab Pvt. Ltd., and finally to Berhampur’s Panchasoft. Panchasoft’s director, Shankar Prusty, is accused of orchestrating the fraudulent scheme.
The scam was regionally managed, with Muna Mahanti handling South Odisha and Aravind Das overseeing North Odisha.
Agents collected original documents and money from aspirants, who were later trained in Hyderabad with leaked exam materials.
On October 29, 114 aspirants were transported from Bhubaneswar to Vizianagaram by bus. The following day, Berhampur police intercepted the buses, arresting the candidates and three middlemen.
Over 110 other aspirants fled after the bust, exposing the scale of the operation.
The CBI has already interrogated several aspirants and summoned more suspects, signaling that the investigation is far from over.
