NAB declares five KP medical colleges manipulated admission process

PESHAWAR: National Accountability Bureau Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has submitted its report in Peshawar High Court regarding illegal admissions in medical colleges of KP. Out of total of 17 private medical and dental colleges, five medical colleges manipulated and maneuvered the admission process wherein lower aggregate candidates of MDCAT were pulled into merit by awarding higher marks in interviews. NAB KP has also referred the case to NAB HQ for authorization of 05 separate investigations against delinquent officers/ officials of PMC and owners/ management of private medical and dental colleges in KP.

Peshawar High Court had ordered to probe the illegal admission in KP medical colleges within three weeks but the NAB has completed the inquiry ahead of time and submitted it to the court.

According to the report five colleges Mohammad College of Medicine, Frontier Medical College, Abbottabad International Medical College and, Women Medical College used interview marks for demanding a hefty fee of five years in a lump sum, donations and bank guarantees.

NAB report says the private medical and dental colleges inflated fee structure as declared in 2019-20, varying up to 44% profit per annum which surely discouraged the deserving candidates/ students for admissions and affected society in general and the same requires to be lowered within the margin of 15% to 20% profit as calculated ranging from Rs. 790,000/- to Rs. 950,000/- per annum.

“The viral audio/ video clip demanding donation disclosed the true picture and black face of the mess created by award of 20% discretionary marks of the interview which were placed at the disposal of the said private colleges, hence, requires forensic analysis”, the report said

According to the NAB KP report misuse of authority and cheating members of the public at large not only inflicted huge loss to the innocent candidates/ students and their parents but also caused the massacre of meritocracy and transparency.

It further said next year no system of central inductions as stipulated in the consensus agreement between PMC & private colleges would further aggravate the situation if not checked in time, hence, requires immediate state intervention.

NAB recommended that the provision of 20% interview marks at the discretion of private medical and dental colleges should be strike down and admissions in these colleges are given at the criterion of public sector colleges in order to remove discrimination and to avoid any corrupt practices in the process of admission in the said colleges so as to promote meritocracy and transparency. NAB further recommended reversal/ rollback of the instant admissions and transparent admission process may be adopted on the analogy of public sector colleges.