The Crime Branch of the Odisha Police arrested Shankar Prusty, the alleged mastermind behind the police sub-inspector recruitment scam, from Uttarakhand, close to the border with Nepal, early on Sunday morning.
Police sources said Prusty, who had been absconding ever since the irregularities in the SI recruitment scam came to light last month, was planning to flee to Dubai from Nepal.
Following arrest and transit remand, Prusty was brought to the Crime Branch office in Bhubaneswar for further questioning. Talking to reporters at the Biju Patnaik International Airport in Bhubaneswar, Prusty denied allegations against him and said that he has applied for anticipatory bail in the Orissa High Court.
At least three teams of the Crime Branch have been conducting raids at various places to arrest Prusty since last month. Earlier, the Crime Branch arrested two key associates of Prusty — Munna Monaty and Arabinda Das — and seven other middlemen who were allegedly engaged to contact aspirants, and collect money and blank cheques from them.
“Prusty is the leader of the syndicate and operates through his agents to escape scrutiny. He was actively monitoring the operations while his agents contacted aspiring candidates, collected original certificates and blank cheques. The certificates and blank cheques were to be returned after the deal amount — Rs 20 to 25 lakh — was paid,” Crime Branch director general Vinaytosh Mishra had said earlier.
Originally from Odisha’s Ganjam district, Prusty is the director of Bhubaneswar-based Panchsoft Technologies Pvt Ltd — the private entity engaged as a sub-contractor in the examination process. The company has since been sealed.
The recruitment scam came to light after an anonymous phone call on September 30 tipped off the Berhampur police about a possible paper leak in the exam scheduled for October 5 and 6. Based on this, police intercepted three buses carrying 114 aspirants to Hyderabad for intensive coaching on the question paper. The 114 aspirants were arrested following interrogation and were recently released on bail by a local court in Berhampur.
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The bust led the Odisha Police Recruitment Board (OPRB) to postpone the exam indefinitely, citing “unforeseen” circumstances. Around 1.53 lakh people had applied for 933 police sub-inspector posts, and officials said the exam will be held once the probe concludes.
The Odisha government has already handed over the case to the CBI, citing the spread of the scam to multiple states, such as Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal, and the involvement of an inter-state organised criminal syndicate.
