The Arthashastra, the ancient treatise on statecraft attributed to Kautilya, tells the king to examine his ministers “by offering temptations.” Book 1, chapter 10, is titled “Ascertaining by Temptations Purity or Impurity in the Character of Ministers.”
In one test, the minister is told: “This king is unrighteous.” In another, he is urged to murder the king “in view of acquiring immense wealth.” In a third, he hears: “The queen is enamoured of thee.” The translation is by R. Shamasastry.