Students approach SHC over medical entry tests yet again

PMC once again seeks more time to submit reply over pleas contesting recent MDCAT

The Sindh High Court heard yet another petition on Monday against the controversial entry tests, for admissions in medical and dental programmes, conducted by the Pakistan Medical Commission on November 29 last year.

A division bench, headed by Justice Muhammad Junaid Ghaffar, heard the plea filed by medical students of Karachi through their counsel.

During the hearing, the petitioners' counsel Jibran Nasir contended that the PMC had assured that no out-of-syllabus questions would be included in the question paper.

Nasir informed the court that the PMC announced the results of the MDCAT on Sunday and his client has cleared the test. However, he contended, the result is of a different student and the name alongside it is of another student.

"I do not know why the PMC was in a hurry to announce the result - the roll number belongs to someone else and the results are of a different student," argued the counsel.

He maintained that the PMC violated court orders while conducting the test as the court had directed the PMC to conduct the test under a unified syllabus.

The PMC once again sought more time to submit its reply over the matter. The court adjourned the hearing of the petitions pertaining to the matter till January 12.

Seeking protection

Another bench, headed by Justice Iqbal Kalhoro, issued notices to the relevant authorities over journalist Ajeeb Lakho's plea seeking protection against alleged threats by the police.

The petitioner, a Khairpurbased journalist, maintained in his plea that he is facing threats by the police after he filed a news report against the Sukkur DIG Iqbal Dara for his alleged involvement in the smuggling of Iranian diesel through Balochistan.

The petitioner contends that officials of the Sindh Police were found involved in the smuggling after a police inquiry and it was suggested that DIG Dara be dismissed.

Maintaining that he has been receiving death threats from Sukkur SP Irfan Samoo and other police officials, Lakho sought protection from the court.

The bench issued notices to Sindh IGP, provincial home department, the federal establishment division secretary and other relevant officials seeking their replies over the journalist's plea by January 23.

Missing citizen

Meanwhile, a plea pertaining to the disappearance of a man from Hyderabad was submitted before the high court on the day.

The petitioner has contended that citizen Zia Shaikh was abducted from his house on December 31, 2021. The petitioner claims that neither the police nor any other state agency is cooperating in tracing the whereabouts of Shaikh.

The petitioner moved the court to direct the authorities to recover Shaikh immediately.

*WITH ADDITIONAL INPUT FROM PPI