Odisha’s ASI Scam: When Jobs Became a Marketplace
The Rs.75 Crore ASI Recruitment Scam: When Dreams Were Sold, and Merit Was Murdered
A state-sized betrayal: police recruitment — meant to be a channel of public service and merit — has been reduced to a marketplace where jobs were reportedly sold for lakhs. The police data dump reveals alarming patterns of coordination between brokers, exam-access handlers, and coaching networks.
A systemic scam built on access and coordination
The data released by investigators contains 117 candidate records — each entry with Aadhaar details, mobile numbers, provisional admit-card traces, coaching references, and logs of who contacted whom. This is not a series of isolated incidents. The repeated cross-linking of mobile numbers and the presence of admit cards only in WhatsApp folders or mobile PDFs point to a centrally coordinated operation.
Multiple entries show candidates receiving provisional admit cards via non-official channels, being instructed to meet at fixed bus junctions or coaching addresses, and handing over documents to intermediaries. These are not mistakes — they are hallmarks of a professionalized racket that knew the precise contours of the recruitment process.
Coaching centres: classrooms that became conduits
Evidence in the police list ties a number of coaching institutes and local tuition centres to facilitation and coordination roles. The records repeatedly reference coaching names and local coordinators who acted as intermediaries — arranging meetings, sharing digital admit-card files, and in some cases relaying instructions from brokers to candidates.
Instances documented in the file include:
- Students told to “collect files” or “wait at the coaching centre” with explicit directions from named coordinators;
- Admit cards and screenshots delivered through coaching-centre WhatsApp groups or by “sir” or “coach” contacts listed in the dataset;
- Multiple students reporting that originals or scanned documents were handed to intermediaries associated with coaching operations;
- Direct references in the dataset of coaching personnel contacting candidates, or candidates naming coaching contacts as the person who provided digital admit resources.
- What was once a place of learning has become a front for laundering ambitions. From the data, several coaching names emerge repeatedly across districts — Vanik, Aryan Academy (Khallikote), Sai Competitive (Rasulgarh), Gayatri Competitive (Nayapalli), Abhinash Pathasala (Nayapalli), Mahindra Coaching (Fire Station, Bhubaneswar), Priyambada Coaching Centre (Jatani), and others.
- These weren’t just coaching classes. Multiple entries reveal:
- Candidates were contacted or guided directly through coaching staff or coordinators, sometimes with instructions like “Meet near CRP Square Vanik at 11 am” or “Wait near NH Sumandi Junction.”
- Many admit cards were stored in students’ phones with notes like “sent by Rakesh Sir,” “given by Swain Sir,” or “downloaded by Popu Bhai.”
- Some candidates openly mention handing over original documents to brokers linked with coaching institutes.
- If this is not a coaching–broker–exam board nexus, what is?
“Every instance of such illegal activity undermines the hard work and aspirations of genuine students and institutions.”
Why OPRB’s inaction raises alarm
How could a fraud of this scale be executed without insider access to recruitment systems? The timing of a cancelled March 7 exam, the resignation of the then OPRB chairman, and a vendor replacement in the recruitment process are facts that demand explanation. The pattern strongly suggests that without insiders within the recruitment apparatus, this operation would have been far harder to pull off.
- Who within the recruitment infrastructure had access to candidate and admit-card metadata?
- Why were sensitive vendor switches permitted without transparent audits?
- Why are investigations limited to brokers while system-level actors remain uncharged?
The real victims: merit, students, and honest institutions
Thousands of aspirants invest years, finances, and emotional labour for public service roles. When the pathway is stolen, the damage is both personal and civic. Genuine coaching institutes and teachers — who legitimately prepare students — see their credibility undermined by a few bad actors who turned their platforms into recruitment conduits.
Demand: A full forensic audit of recruitments (2010–2025)
Partial arrests and symbolic action will not be enough. The state must commission an independent forensic audit of all recruitments in the last 15 years, cross-check marks, admit-card logs, attendance sheets, vendor contracts, and digital access logs. Without such a wide sweep, there can be no faith restored.
Suggested immediate steps:
- Constitute an independent judicial commission with IT forensic experts to audit recruitment databases and vendor logs.
- Freeze recruitment-related digital audit trails, admit-card issuance logs, and vendor contract records pending review.
- Re-examine candidate lists from suspicious recruitments and, where necessary, re-run merit-based selections or vacancy audits.
- Protect genuine whistleblowers and ensure witness protection for victims whose testimony points to insiders.
Conclusion
The uncovered Rs.75 crore scandal is not just about money — it is an attack on merit, on the faith of students, and on the integrity of public recruitment. The only way to reestablish trust is a thorough, transparent, and immediate audit of past recruitments and prosecution that follows the trail without fear or favour.