ISLAMABAD: In light of the stay order given by the Islamabad High Court (IHC), the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) has restrained Shifa College of Medicine and Dentistry from offering admission.

The acting registrar, PMDC, Dr Shaista Faisal said the decision of the IHC, announced on Wednesday, would be implemented in letter and sprit.

“PMDC believes in merit and will never compromise on quality of medical and dental education,” she said.

IHC Justice Athar Minallah, in a petition filed by the college students seeking registration with the PMDC, directed the institution to stop offering medical and dental admissions till a final decision was given in the case.

As per official statement issued by the PMDC, the IHC judge observed that the college administration had complied with the court orders with regard to holding of exams through Bahria University with which it was affiliated before.

The court has also issued contempt notices to the college administration for not complying with the orders. Furthermore, it has stopped the university from offering admission till the university gets recognition from the PMDC and is included in the Schedule III of PMDC Ordinance 1962.

The IHC has also directed the council to provide names and details of colleges which have either been barred from offering admissions or closed down.

Shifa Tameer-i-Millat University, Bahria University, PMDC and the petitioners — 349 college students — were represented by their counsel.

The counsel said the students had filed the petitions on the grounds that the college, without notifying the petitioners, had disaffiliated itself from Bahria University, and now it has failed to get recognition from the PMDC.

PMDC President Dr Masood Hameed Khan said the court’s decision had vindicated the council’s stance with regard to quality education and had put at rest the criticism it faced for refusing to recognise the students’ degrees.

Published in Dawn, September 18th, 2014