LAHORE, June 18: A division bench of the Lahore High Court on Wednesday referred the petitions of the students of three medical colleges, challenging their affiliation with the University of Health Sciences (UHS), to the chief justice for placing them before the division bench already seized of the similar pleas.

Headed by Justice Tassadaq Jilani, the bench observed that since petitions of the same nature were pending before another bench, it would not be appropriate to decide the identical petitions separately.

The petitions were filed by the students of the Punjab Medical College, the de’ Montmorency College of Dentistry and the Allama Iqbal Medical College.

The petitioners claimed that UHS was not an internationally- recognized institution since it was not affiliated with any foreign institution. Even the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council would take nine years to grant affiliation to the UHS.

The second, third and fourth year students of these colleges had moved the LHC through an urgent petition, arguing that they were currently registered with the Punjab University which had already conducted their professional examination.

According to the petitioners, the UHS had issued a schedule of professional examinations to commence from June 28 and they needed relief before this date.

Advocate Iqbal Mahmood Awan argued that the de’ Montmorency College was affiliated with the King Edward Medical College. It could not be further affiliated with the UHS. The KEMC had already been exempted from such affiliation.

He further submitted that teaching and training in basic dental sciences and clinical specialties was being conducted at de’ Montmorency College and the Punjab Dental Hospital with the coordination of the KEMC.

He claimed that both the KEMC and de’ Montmorency College were being supervised by a dean, Prof Dr Mumtaz Hasan.

Some 63 students of the Allama Iqbal Medical College had also moved the court against their college’s affiliation with the UHS after which the court had granted them a stay.

Later, the stay was vacated by the Supreme Court, directing the LHC to decide the matter within 15 days.