PESHAWAR, May 7: A two-member bench of the Peshawar High Court on Tuesday ruled that seats reserved for backward areas in medical colleges could only be filled by candidates who had studied in those areas.

The bench, comprising Justice Khalida Rachied and Justice Malik Hamid Saeed, dismissed a writ petition filed by a student, Abdul Raqib, stating that the admission committee had not given him admission against the seat reserved for backward areas in the Khyber College of Dentistry (KCD). Instead the seat was converted into an open merit seat.

The petitioner said that he belonged to district Chitral of the provincially administered tribal areas (Pata) but due to posting of his father he had to study in D.I. Khan.

He stated that he had applied for admission against a seat reserved for Chitral area in the KCD. He added that although no other student applied against the said seat, he was denied admission on the ground that he had not studied in that area.

Advocate Maazullah Barkandi who appeared for the petitioner, argued that the admission committee had no authority to transfer the seat reserved for backward areas to the open merit category.

Advocate Waseemuddin Khattak who appeared for the KCD contended that the reserved seats were meant for backward areas and not for students who had studied in settled areas.

He argued that when the petitioner could study in D.I.Khan then why he could not compete on open merit. He added that according to the prospectus of the college a vacant seat had to be transferred to the category of open merit.