SHC tells PMDC to comment on plea seeking standard admission system

The Sindh High Court has directed the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) to file comments on a petition seeking a standard test policy for admissions to the government-run medical colleges and universities.

Petitioners Haziq Khursheed and Pasban welfare foundation, a non-governmental organisation, have moved the court, challenging the decision of the Sindh government to cancel the entry tests conducted by the National-Testing Service for admissions to medical colleges and universities and requesting that the government be given an order to develop a standard system for admissions.

Counsel Farah Khan submitted on Saturday that the issue of the cancellation of admissions test results had been decided by another bench of the high court, but the second issue of the PMDC’s negligence was yet to be decided.

She said the PMDC by virtue of Regulations 2016 had decided the admission criteria and fee and refund of fee structure, but the private medical colleges were not following it. She added that under the law the PMDC was supposed to keep any eye on such violations.

The court directed the PMDC to file their comments and adjourned the case on January 16, 2018.

On December 5, the SHC had set aside the government’s notification with regard to the cancellation the entry tests results of public-sector medical and private universities and a subsequent inquiry by the health department.

The court directed the health department and the council and medical institutions to proceed with the processing of admissions to the MBBS and BDS programmes in public sector medical universities and colleges on the basis of the NTS tests held on October 22 and conclude the same expeditiously.

The chief minister, acting on report of the inquiry committee, had cancelled on November 11 the entry tests and directed that the tests would be held all over again.

The petitioners, who were medical students, had submitted in the petition that after the announcement of the test results, rumors were spread on social media that the question paper of the NTS was leaked one day before the test.