Police arrest 69 in raid on 95 education consultancies

In a major crackdown against education consultancies allegedly defrauding students aspiring to pursue higher studies abroad, Nepal police on 15 May raided 95 such operators and arrested 69 people in Kathmandu Valley, an area in central Nepal that includes the capital city.

In addition to arresting the consultancy operators, the Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office retrieved computers, other devices, and documents from the operators.

“We are still studying the matter,” Rameshwor Karki, spokesperson for the investigation, told University World News.

He said the consultancies were accused of violating laws and committing various forms of fraud. Some were allegedly operating without registration with government agencies, while others had allegedly failed to renew their licences.

There are allegations that the consultancies defrauded hundreds of students by promising, and then failing, to send them abroad or by allegedly misleading them over the quality of the institution they were being sent to.

One consultancy, for instance, had allegedly collected NR3.1 million (US$20,125) from each of five students but never sent it to the relevant college to which the students believed they had applied.

“A few appear to have forged certificates and government documents to facilitate sending students abroad,” Karki said. The police have recovered duplicate government stamps and letterhead from such institutions, he said.

Student pressure

Issuing a public notice, the investigating police have asked students duped by the consultancies to lodge the complaints. After collecting the evidence, they will lodge cases at the court. The names of the consultancies, however, have not been made public, as the police await the outcome of their investigation before revealing them.

A group of students organised under the banner “Scan the Scammers” have since November last year been pressing the government authorities to act against dozens of consultancies.

They have been claiming that they were duped because they were sent to training institutes in various cities in the United Arab Emirates which have named themselves as universities and colleges but were not accredited to issue degrees.

Bishwajeet Kumar Yadav, who has been leading the protest, said affected students are happy to see the government take action.

“The arrests happened the same day [15 May] we had met the education minister seeking actions against those who cheated us,” he told University World News.

He said that because the police have not made the list of the consultancies public the students do not yet know if those against whom they had sought actions have come under the police radar.

“We believe our money will be refunded and the guilty will be booked as per the law,” he said. Each of those who have returned from the Gulf nation after finding they were cheated spent between NR750,000(US$4,870) and NR1.5 million (US$9,740).

Police accused of ‘tarnishing image’ of sector

The umbrella body of the education consultancies, however, said the way police have conducted their investigations is tarnishing their image.

Bhawanath Humagain, general secretary of the Education Consultancy Association of Nepal, said law enforcement bodies should not be giving the impression that everyone involved in this sector is a fraud.

“We are fully committed to ensuring impartial and strict action against anyone who violates the law,” he said. “However, disregard for due process under the guise of law enforcement and the devaluation of national contribution cannot be accepted.”

The number of students from Nepal aspiring to overseas study is ever-increasing. As many as 98,997 students received permission for study abroad (via “no objection certificates”) in 2023, increasing to 106,831 in 2024 and 123,092 last year.

This trend has also led to a proliferation in the numbers of consultancies and the allegations of fraud as well. Around 4,000 such institutions are operating across Nepal.

According to records at Nepal’s Ministry of Education, the highest number of no-objection certificates last year were issued for Japan, with 39,847 certificates. The United Kingdom followed with 27,475, Australia with 16,279, South Korea with 9,757, and the United States with 8,870.