Overview
- Odisha CID arrested Shankar Prusty in Uttarakhand near the India–Nepal border with local police assistance and moved him to Bhubaneswar and then Cuttack for interrogation.
- Police say he had been absconding for over a month and was allegedly preparing to flee to Dubai via Nepal, though he denies any role in the leak.
- Prusty heads Panchsoft Technologies, identified as a key subcontractor in the CPSE 2024 chain from OPRB to ITI Ltd to Silicon Techlab to Panchsoft, which investigators link to the question-paper breach.
- Authorities report 124 arrests to date, including 114 aspirants recently granted bail, and the state has handed the case to the CBI citing inter-state links.
- Investigators allege candidates paid Rs 10 lakh upfront with Rs 20–25 lakh due after selection, and brokers took original certificates and blank cheques as guarantees, claims Prusty disputes.