Report in MDCAT paper case sought

LAHORE :The Lahore High Court on Wednesday directed the Punjab chief secretary to furnish inquiry report into the leakage of the question paper of Medical & Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT).

Justice Shahid Waheed also extended stay order until October 6, under which University of Health Sciences (UHS) had been barred from announcing the result of MDCAT, for admission in MBBS, in the wake of controversy of leakage of question paper on the social media. The judge was hearing several petitions filed by Wajihul Hassan, Ayesha bin Tariq and other students who appeared in the MDCAT for year 2017.  As the hearing started, the government law officer tried to seek adjournment which the court declined straightway, observing that it was a matter of future of thousands of students and the case would not be deferred. The judge showed concern over non-finalisation of inquiry report and summoned Chief Secretary Zahid Saeed on short notice.

The court reassembled after one hour while the chief secretary (CS) made his appearance to seek two days time for filing the report. He said two inquiries were conducted and no evidence of alleged leakage had been found, adding that the third inquiry was underway and the same would be completed in two days. Petitioners' counsel Fatima Malik had argued that the UHS had conducted the test on August 20. She submitted that it had lost credibility as the question paper of the MDACT for 2017 was already leaked on the social media by a teacher at a private college/academy in connivance with the authorities at UHS.

She asserted that the career of a large number of students had been put to risk by this criminal act. She submitted that the petitioners and other thousands of students would suffer irreparable loss if the leaked paper was not declared void and the UHS was not ordered to hold the MDCAT exam afresh.

remanded: An accountability court Wednesday granted 10-day physical remand of Shalimar Assistant Commissioner Safdar Virk, an accused of embezzling millions of rupees as sub-registrar of Wagah Town, to National Accountability Bureau (NAB). 

The bureau produced AC Safdar Virk before the court and sought his remand to carry out investigation in the scam. The court directed the NAB to produce the accused again by October 14 along with investigation report till that date. 

The NAB had started an inquiry after receiving complaints of corruption in Wagah Town Registrar office. The inquiry began in April which was converted into an investigation. During the investigation, it was revealed that Safdar Virk during his tenure between September 2016 to February 2017 as sub-registrar embezzled millions in connivance with other officials concerned. The suspects filed bogus entries during the registry process. It is pertinent to mention here that four other accused are already in NAB custody in this case.