KATHMANDU, AUGUST 5

Two policemen were arrested after a probe panel found them involved in stealing and leaking question papers set for Preliminary Scholastic Assessment Test (Pre-SAT) to conduct exams for police employees aspiring to join the UN Peacekeeping Mission.

Successful police personnel who make it through the Pre- SAT are eligible to appear for SAT, which almost guarantees a cop a place in UN Peacekeeping Mission.

The question paper leakage came to light during the second day of exams conducted on Saturday when 2,400 police personnel ranging from constables to senior superintendents of police were appearing for the test at Naxal-based Nepal Police Headquarters and all the seven provincial police offices.

After some examinees complained of question paper leakage on Saturday, the test was rescheduled on the same day and a new set of question papers were prepared. A police source said that police helper Suresh Bam and Head Constable Kumar Shah were taken into custody upon confirmation of their involvement in stealing and supplying the question paper to some examinees.

Bam was a helper for the UN Section at NP Headquarters while Shah had been working for the Cyber Bureau. The duo has been detained in Armed Police No 1 Battalion for interrogation and further investigation.

The image of the question paper was also found on Shah's mobile set. Nepal Police had formed a six-member probe panel led by Deputy Inspector General of Police Basant Lama to investigate the leakage of the question paper.

Pre-SAT is conducted by the UN Section of Nepal Police, which also bears responsibility for preparation of the question paper.

According to the source, the question paper was stolen from a locked cupboard of the UN Section by using a duplicate key. 'Investigation is under way to establish the details of examinees who received the question paper and how much they had paid for it. The involvement of other police personnel has also been suspected.

We will reveal the truth soon and initiate legal action against the guilty, whoever they are,' the source said.

A version of this article appears in the print on August 6 2021, of The Himalayan Times.