UP APO Previous Year Question Paper [Download PDF]

UP APO Previous Year Question Papers includes Prelims and Mains papers set by the Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission (UPPSC) for the Assistant Prosecution Officer exam. 

• Prelims paper carries 150 objective questions for 150 marks in 2 hours: 50 from General Knowledge and 100 from Law, with one-third of a mark cut for each wrong answer.
• Mains has six descriptive papers worth 500 marks. Final merit is decided on Mains (500) plus Interview (50); Prelims marks are only for screening.

Key Points About UP APO Previous Year Question Papers

The important points about UP APO PYQ's and exam format are mentioned below: 

• UPPSC conducts the UP APO exam in three stages: Prelims (150 marks), Mains (500 marks) and Interview (50 marks).
• Prelims papers from all recent cycles follow the same split: 50 GK questions and 100 Law questions in 2 hours.
• The Law section weightage is fixed by UPPSC: BNS 30, BNSS 25, BSA 20, UP Police Act and Regulations 15, Constitution 10.
• Mains has six papers: General Hindi, General English, General Knowledge, Criminal Law & Procedure, Sakshya Adhiniyam and Anya Adhiniyam.
• Candidates must score at least 40% (35% for SC/ST) in both Prelims and Mains to stay in the merit race.
• Papers before 2025 are still useful for concepts, but answers must be checked against the new criminal laws.

Download UP APO Previous Year Question Papers PDF With Solution

UP APO Previous Year Question Papers PDF 

You can download UP APO previous year papers PDF for both Prelims and Mains from the tables below, free of cost. Each Prelims PDF contains the full GK and Law paper; each Mains PDF contains the six descriptive papers of that year.

UP APO Prelims Previous Year Question Papers PDF

UP APO Mains Previous Year Question Papers PDF

Exam	Download Link
UP APO 2026 Mains	Download PDF
UP APO 2015 Mains	Download PDF

UP APO Previous Year Question Papers: Overview

UP APO previous year question papers show candidates exactly how UPPSC tests criminal law for the Assistant Prosecution Officer post.

UP APO Prelims Previous Year Question Papers Pattern

UP APO Prelims previous year question papers have 150 objective questions: 50 on General Knowledge and 100 on Law, to be finished in 2 hours. Each wrong answer costs one-third of a mark, so guesswork pulls your score down quickly. The Prelims only screens candidates for Mains; its marks are not added to the final merit.

Law Section Weightage (100 marks)

General Knowledge Weightage (50 marks)

UP APO Mains Previous Year Question Papers Pattern

UP APO Mains previous year question papers follow a fixed pattern: six descriptive papers worth 500 marks, written over three days. 

Check - Are you Eligible to Take UP APO Exam 

UP APO Previous Year Paper Question Analysis

UP APO previous year papers are moderate to difficult, and the Law section decides most results. Questions are mostly section-based and definition-based: which provision covers an act, what the punishment is, which court can try it, and when a statement is admissible.

What the Previous Year Question Papers Repeatedly Test

• Criminal law: General exceptions, right of private defence, culpable homicide vs murder, offences against women, theft, extortion, robbery and dacoity.
• Procedure: FIR, arrest, bail and anticipatory bail, charge-sheet, cognisance, summons and warrant trials.
• Evidence: Relevancy, admissions and confessions, dying declarations, burden of proof, examination of witnesses, electronic records.
• UP Police Act and Regulations: Duties and powers of police officers, a 15-mark area that many candidates leave for the end.
• Constitution: Articles 20, 21 and 22, plus Part III rights linked to criminal procedure.

Using Old Papers After BNS, BNSS and BSA

Papers from 2015 to 2022 quote IPC, CrPC and Evidence Act sections. Solve them for the concept, then rewrite the answer under the new code. These are the mappings that come up most often:

Benefits of Solving UP APO Previous Year Question Papers

Solving UP APO previous year papers shows candidates how UPPSC frames questions, which no textbook can. Candidates can also refer  how to Prepare for UP APO Exam for better preparation.

• You learn the examiner's style. UPPSC often asks for the exact section, punishment or exception. Papers train you to read Bare Acts at that level of detail.
• You stop losing marks to negative marking. With one-third of a mark cut per wrong answer, papers show you how many questions you can safely attempt.
• You find your weak code early. A wrong-answer log after two or three papers usually shows whether BNS, BNSS or BSA is pulling your score down.
• You build 2-hour stamina. Answering 150 questions means roughly 48 seconds per question; timed papers get you used to that pace.
• You prepare for Mains writing. Old Mains papers show the depth expected in General Hindi essays and in the three law papers.

How to Effectively Use UP APO Previous Year Papers? 

Use UP APO previous year papers in stages, not all at once. A simple four-week cycle works for most aspirants:

How to Prepare for UP APO Exam 2026 using Previous Year Question Papers? 

Candidates can prepare for the next UP APO exam by building on the 2025-cycle paper, since UPPSC has not released a fresh APO notification.

1. Start with the syllabus and weightage. Read the official UP APO syllabus and the UP APO exam pattern. Note the 30-25-20-15-10 split of the Law paper.
2. Read Bare Acts first, guides later. BNS, BNSS and BSA are new, and many guidebooks still carry errors in section numbers. The Bare Act is your final check.
3. Do not skip the UP Police Act. It carries 15 marks in Prelims and also appears in Mains Paper 4.
4. Give GK a fixed daily slot. Current events alone carry 10 marks. Thirty minutes a day on news and UP-specific updates is enough.
5. Start Mains writing before Prelims. Prelims to Mains was about two months in the last cycle (22 March to 28 June 2026), which is too short to learn answer writing from scratch.
6. Cover all 16 Anya Adhiniyam Acts. Paper 6 carries 100 marks and decides many final ranks.

Common Mistakes to Avoid While Using UP APO Previous Year Question Papers

Candidates make the biggest mistake with UP APO previous year question papers treating old answers as current law. Avoid these as well: 

• Trusting old answer keys blindly. A 2018 answer that cites IPC 302 is still correct in concept, but in a 2026 exam the answer is BNS 103.
• Solving without a timer. Untimed practice hides the real problem, which is usually speed in the Law section.
• Guessing on every doubtful question. Four wrong guesses cancel out one correct answer and a bit more. Attempt only where you can eliminate at least two options.
• Using only Prelims papers. Mains decides your rank. Skipping Mains papers until after Prelims is a common reason for low Mains scores.
• Downloading from random channels. Unverified PDFs often have missing pages or wrong keys. Cross-check answers with the UPPSC answer key wherever it is available.
• Ignoring Hindi. General Hindi is a 100-mark Mains paper, equal to each law paper.

How to Download UP APO Previous Year Question Papers?

Candidates can download UP APO previous year question papers from the table above or check them on the official UPPSC website. To check the official source: 

1. Go to uppsc.up.nic.in.
2. Open the Answer Key section on the home page.
3. Look for the Assistant Prosecution Officer examination of the year you need and download the PDF.