MDCAT paper leak falls within ambit of Anti-Corruption Act, rules magistrate

A judicial magistrate has returned bail applications of six suspects, including three officials of Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS), in the MDCAT paper leak case over lack of jurisdiction, observing that the suspects' alleged crime falls within the ambit of Anti-Corruption Act.

DUHS controller of examination Fuad Sheikh, deputy controller of examination Manthar Ali, and assistant admin officer Muhammad Farooque Khan, along with three other individuals -- Tariq Aziz Samo, Shan Asfandyar and Shiraz Bilal -- have been booked under the relevant sections of Pakistan Penal Code and Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016 for alleged misuse of their official position by leaking the MDCAT question paper through various social media sites against monetary gains.

Judicial Magistrate (Malir) Piyar Ali Khoso pronounced his order on the applications filed by the six suspects seeking post-arrest bail.

"I am of the view that alleged act of accused persons comes within the ambit of Anti-Corruption Act; hence, this court lacks jurisdiction to decide the fate of instant bail application," he ruled, returning the bail pleas for want of jurisdiction.

He ordered that the FIR along with the case record be also returned to the investigating officer for its submission before the relevant court of law.

The magistrate observed that it was well-established that if the employee is a public servant as defined under Section 21 of the Pakistan Penal Code or Section 2 of Prevention of Anti-Corruption Act 1947, their conduct is subject to the anti-corruption laws. Employees of public-sector universities like DUHS typically qualify as public servants because these institutions are government-funded, he added.

He said that in Sindh, corruption cases often fall under the Anti-Corruption Act, and the National Accountability Ordinance (NAB Ordinance), depending on the nature of the offence.

"Generally, under anti-corruption laws, corrupt practices include: 1) misuse of authority for personal gain, 2) fraudulent activity, 3) bribery, embezzlement or misappropriation of public funds," he said. "If the act in question involves any of the above, it can fall under the ambit of anti-corruption laws."

In addition to this, he went on, Section 5 (d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act clarifies that misconduct of public servant is schedule offence of the Act.

"Schedule offence specified in Pakistan Criminal Law Amendment Act 1958 could exclusively [be] triable by special judge appointed under the said Act. Normal offences could be charged and tried together with schedule offences, exclusively triable by special judge, whereas ordinary court could not try the schedule offences coupled with normal offences."

Federal Investigation Agency's prosecutor Ejaz Ali Kalwar contended that the suspects were nominated in the FIR, which was lodged after due enquiry.

He admitted that all offences were bailable and didn't fall under the prohibitory clause, yet the nature and gravity of the committed offences is against the public at large. The applicants' lawyer argued that their clients were innocent and had falsely been implicated in the case, pleading that they be released on bail.

The FIA’s Cyber Crime Reporting Circle Karachi has registered an FIR, stating that on October 18, 2024, an inquiry was launched on the complaint about the MDCAT entry examination paper leak on September 22.

Upon inquiry, the FIA said, DUHS officials and several others were found involved in leaking the paper. The suspects sold information using social media as a tool and were responsible for breaching confidentiality during the preparation phase of the exam, it added.