It has been found that the Ministry of Education has recommended study visas to more than 20 foreign nationals based on forged documents from Valmiki Vidyapeeth (Campus), Kathmandu.
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The Ministry of Education has been found to have recommended study visas to more than 20 foreign nationals based on forged documents from the Valmiki Vidyapeeth (Campus), Kathmandu.
During the investigation by the Immigration Department, it was found that visas were recommended to 10 people on the basis of forged documents on Thursday. After that, during further investigation by the Ministry of Education, it was found that visas were recommended to 10 more people a month ago based on the same forged documents. Some of them have already been issued visas by the Immigration Department.
After it was found that the documents of the Valmiki Campus for visas were forged, the Ministries of Home and Education have launched separate investigations. Campus chief Achyut Lamichhane said that the Ministries of Home and Education have demanded details regarding visa recommendations since 2078 BS.
The Immigration Department has also booked Subodh Shukla, who had approached the Ministry of Education and Immigration for visa recommendations with forged documents. A Chinese national has also been booked along with him. Officials of the Ministry of Education say that Shukla, a former teacher of Vishwabhasha Campus, who lives in Birgunj, has been forging campus documents to obtain visa recommendations.
Previously, Shukla had obtained visa recommendations from the Ministry of Education for 10 foreign nationals to become a teacher in Sanskrit literature, a subject that is not being taught at Valmiki Campus. Most of those who requested visa recommendations using forged documents are Chinese nationals. Others are Koreans and Russians.
Campus head Lamichhane said that both the letters are not official from the campus. 'The registration number is also not matching. A letter with a registration number of 2400 has been used to request a visa recommendation from the Ministry of Education. Our registration number has just reached 600,' he said. 'It seems that the letterhead and signature have also been forged. A month ago, a visa was requested for a subject that is not taught at Valmiki. That letter also seems to have been forged.' He said that the Home and Education Ministries have been informed about both these letters.
There is a provision that the concerned educational institution for foreign students to study in Nepal requests a visa from the Ministry of Education and the Immigration Department provides the visa on the recommendation of the ministry. In Nepal, when recommending a visa to a foreign student for study, there is a provision that the admission, fee and study-related arrangements issued by the concerned educational institution and documents should be attached. The Ministry of Education is accused of making the recommendation without checking the authenticity of the documents.
Initial investigation revealed that Shukla himself used to prepare forged documents and obtain visa recommendations for foreign citizens. An official of the Ministry of Education said that details were found that Shukla used to submit forged documents, including the receipt of admission to the campus. There is a provision for the visa section under the School Education Division to recommend study visas to foreign students.
According to Bhim Regmi, former head of Vishwabhasha Campus, Shukla used to teach Sanskrit to foreign students as a part-time teacher in 2073 BS. At that time, he stopped teaching after it was found that he had forged a letter stating that he was the department head to go to the 'Sanskrit Conference' that was supposed to be held in Canada. Professors of the campus say that Shukla has been lying about being a teacher of Valmiki when he goes to Vishwabhasha Campus for the past few years and teaching in Vishwabhasha when he goes to Valmiki.
The Ministry of Education has started an investigation into the involvement of employees in visa recommendations based on forged documents. As per the ministerial decision, a committee has been formed under the coordination of the Ministry's Joint Secretary Chandrakant Bhusal. The members of the committee include the Ministry's Law Under-Secretary Gopikrishna Regmi and Administration Branch Officer Gunaraj Bhattarai. The secretariat of Education Minister Sasmit Pokharel has set a deadline for the committee to submit the investigation report within a week. 'The committee will also study the involvement of employees in the study visa recommendation process, the status of document verification and procedural weaknesses,' said a press note issued by the ministry.
The Ministry of Education has also written to the Ministry of Home Affairs to conduct a detailed investigation and take legal action, suspecting that suspicious documents and fake receipts were used in the study visa recommendation process. The Education Ministry team has also monitored the concerned Valmiki campus. It is reported that errors were found in the admission and study details of foreigners recommended for visas during the monitoring.
‘The students for whom visa recommendations were sought. Those students were not found to have been admitted to the campus,’ said an employee who went to the monitoring. The ministry has stated that the recommendation letter issued for the study visa has also been canceled as the credibility of the documents submitted has been questioned during the initial investigation. The letter sent to the Ministry of Home Affairs also points out the need for further coordination between the relevant bodies to prevent misuse of the study visa recommendation process. Ministry spokesperson Shiva Kumar Sapkota said that a committee has been formed to find out the truth and those involved in the irregularities will be identified after the report comes.
