Nawaz no-show for Sharif college irks the Supreme Court

Punjab Governor's son tenders unconditional apology for admitting a student in a medical college despite court orders

LAHORE: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar, while hearing a case pertaining to private medical colleges on Thursday, questioned why former prime minister Nawaz Sharif failed to show up in court in person.

“He himself should have appeared before the court,” observed the CJP, as Sharif Medical College principal Brigadier (retd) Dr Zafar Ahmed informed the court that the college was a trust with the former PM being its chairman.

A two-member bench of the top court, headed by the CJP and comprising Justice Ijazul Ahsan, resumed hearing of the case at the Supreme Court’s Lahore Registry. The court had taken a suo motu notice on the fee structure and admission criteria of private medical colleges operating the country.



The principal of the Sharif Medical College appeared before the court where the CJP asked him why he did not appear during the previous hearing, a day earlier.

The CJP remarked that the owners of all colleges were present while Brig Ahmed was saying he had not received the notice.

When the principal explained that the college was a trust and Nawaz Sharif was the chairman of the trust, the CJP asked why Sharif failed to attend.

Answering a question about the fee being charged from students at the college, the principal said they had been charging Rs875,000 per annum. To this, the CJP asked him why they had been charging extra.

The court directed him to fill the pro forma, featuring details of bank accounts and expenditures incurred on running the college.

“We will not let the money become a hurdle in the way of intelligent children’s education,” the CJP remarked.

Meanwhile, the bench rejected the oral apology of the Punjab Governor’s son Asif Rajwana who told the court that he had apologised over his phone to the lady lawyer over the issue of the admission of a student to a local medical college.

The CJP had summoned Rajwana over his alleged interference for the admission of a medical student to a private medical college, despite a stay order from the court.

“What did you want to say to her on phone? How dare you interfere in a court matter!” said the CJP, ordering him to submit a written apology.

The court also accepted an unconditional apology from Faisalabad Medical University Vice Chancellor Dr Fareed Zafar. The bench then sought a complete record of three medical colleges including the Sharif Medical and Dental College.



The bench ordered the owners of the Central Park Medical College and the Amna Inayat Medical College to appear in person along with affidavits and details about fee structure, admission criteria, and facilities being provided to the students.

Meanwhile, a person in the courtroom suddenly broke into tears and said that her daughter fulfilled the merit requirement, but they could not afford the fee. “I only had Rs500,000 for the fee of my daughter and couldn’t pay the rest of the amount,” he pleaded.

A PMDC representative told the court that there was a 5% scholarship quota for outstanding students but they never received a single application from private colleges for these awards.

The Punjab chief secretary told the court that the Punjab Endowment Fund was established for the financial support of intelligent and deserving students. The bench directed him to check as to what extent the fund could support deserving students.

The bench then adjourned the hearing till January 6.