Orissa High Court cancels assistant section officer mains exam, notifies Dec 7 as fresh date

Bhubaneswar, Nov 13 (PTI) The Orissa High Court has cancelled the July 13 mains examination for the recruitment of its assistant section officers (ASOs), expressing doubts over fairness in the process.

The High Court also notified December 7 as the date for conducting a fresh test for the 7,113 candidates, who had taken the May 4 preliminary exam and qualified for the mains, Registrar (Examination) S K Dash Ray said in a notification issued on Wednesday.

"Since the court entertains serious doubts in the conduct of the mains written examination by the agency engaged for the said purpose, the court has decided to cancel the same which was held on July 13, 2025 in order to ensure fairness in the examination process," it said.

It also mentioned that the written examination will be conducted in three sittings for the subjects -- English, General Awareness and Reasoning, and Mathematics.

"Candidates can download their e-admit cards from the recruitment corner of the high court website between November 17 and December 5," Ray added.

Sources said that the Orissa High Court cancelled the mains examination after finding that Silicon Tech, one of the firms found to be involved in the SI recruitment scam, had conducted the process.

Meanwhile, the CBI has formally taken over the investigation of the police sub-inspector (SI) recruitment scam and registered a case at its Bhubaneswar branch.

Sources said a dedicated team, led by an officer of the rank of deputy superintendent of police (DSP), will conduct a thorough probe into the irregularities.

The Crime Branch of Odisha Police, which was probing into the SI recruitment scam have so far arrested 126 people, including 114 aspiring candidates. PTI AAM AAM ACD