LAHORE – The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Thursday extended the stay on the announcement of Medical & Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT) 2017 till October 4.
The orders were passed by Justice Shahid Waheed on petitions filed by Ayesha Bin Tariq and other candidates challenging the MDCAT 2017 paper after allegations surfaced that the paper was leaked on social media before its commencement.
As the proceedings started on Thursday, the representative of Pakistan Medical and Dental Council argued that the allegations regarding the leaking of paper were not true.
He contended that on the directives of Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif, an inquiry had been launched into the matter.
At this, the court wondered that what was the motive of a fruitless inquiry and adjourned the hearing till October 4.
According to credible sources, the report formulated by the Punjab Government found no evidence of the paper being leaked, however, an official response in this regard is awaited.
The petitioners had submitted that more than 65,000 students appeared in MDCAT held on August 20. They alleged that the paper was leaked ahead of time and any result announced on this basis would be an injustice to deserving students. They pleaded the court to order the UHS to hold the test afresh.
MDCAT Paper Leak
The news of MDCAT paper leak spread like wildfire on social media after August 20 when some of the users shared pictures of the paper.
The allegation that the paper, which decides who would be becoming a doctor or dental surgeon, became mainstream when students moved Lahore High Court seeking an inquiry.
At that time, UHS Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Junaid Sarfraz Khan rubbished the rumors that the entry test paper had been leaked.
According to a UHS spokesman, it was just a hoax by a Facebook page named ‘Ya mbbs hai mamu’ that claimed the leakage of paper.
The UHS head also moved FIA to track the perpetrator who according to him dented the credibility of the institute.
More than 65,000 candidates including 41,000 female students appeared for the Punjab Medical & Dental Colleges’ Admission Test (MDCAT).
The University of Health Sciences (UHS) had deputed around 5,500 invigilators and around 1,000 superintendents and deputy superintendents.
The test was held simultaneously at 28 centres established in 13 cities – Lahore, Faisalabad, Sahiwal, Multan, Bahawalpur, Rahim Yar Khan, Sargodha, Gujrat, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Sialkot, DG Khan and Hassan Abdal, The Nation reported.
This year, the candidates are competing for 3405 MBBS seats in 17 public sector medical colleges and 216 BDS seats in three public dental colleges of the province. Besides, there are 2590 MBBS seats available in 21 private medical colleges and 555 BDS seats in nine private dental colleges affiliated with the university.
