LAHORE: The Faisalabad Medical University (FMU) has bulldozed the five-month-long entire process of admissions to the two-year Diploma in Medical Radiology and Diagnostics (DMRD) allegedly to facilitate a candidate of choice.

The university rescheduled the entire admission process of the DMRD instead of going for re-advertisement, shortlisted the select candidates and conducted the entrance test, alerting them to be ready to appear for interviews.

The FMU’s decision has stunned the top-merit selected candidates who had passed the previous entrance test, qualified for the interviews and even deposited a fee Rs85,000 each after the final selection was made in March 2024.

It was evident from the university’s official documents wherein the final list of the five candidates was issued in March, 2024.

Admissions to two-year diploma restarted with select candidates, bypassing the whole process

“On the recommendations of the interview/selection committee, the Faisalabad Medical University Faisalabad, the five candidates i.e, Dr Usman Ghani, Dr Aurangzeb, Dr Umar Saeed, Dr Aena Sehar and Dr Naba Asif are hereby selected for two-year diploma in the medical radiology diagnosis for the session 2023-24,” reads the notification issued by FMU Registrar Dr Akmal Rashid.

These selected candidates have declared the new process an open-and-shut case of blatant violation of the merit and favouritism, demanding the Punjab government investigate as to why the university had rubbished the completed process just to accommodate a candidate who was said to be a son of FMU Controller Examination Dr Ghulam Mahboob Subhani.

Dawn obtained the copies of all the relevant documents which showed the favourite candidate was serving as the medical officer (MO) at the Allied Hospital Faisalabad, the attached hospital of the FMU.

According to the documents, the candidate-in-question completed his house job in September 2022 at a private medical university of Faisalabad from where he had done MBBS. He was issued a certificate of permanent medical registration by the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) on Sept 31, 2022 on completing his house job from the private medical university, declaring him the designated medical officer.

It shocked many when the controller’s son, a designated MO, was again enrolled for the house job at the Allied Hospital in alleged violation of the rules of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) and the Punjab government/health department. His name was included in the list of 123 fresh candidates for house job from July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024 who graduated from the private institutions for the annual session (2023-24), according to the notification issued by the Allied Hospital Faisalabad medical superintendent (a copy is also available with Dawn).

An official says the enrollment of the designated MO for the second house job is one of the glaring examples of merit violations and it was done to give him favour for admission to the diploma course. He says the son of the controller examination was a part of the previous selection process and he couldn’t qualify for the interview though he had passed the entrance test.

The FMU, on Nov 24, 2023, had advertised the admissions to nine diploma courses in various specialties for the session 2023-24, inviting applications from the interested medical graduates (MBBS or equivalent).

Following the advertisement, 72 candidates applied for the admission to DMRD besides hundreds of other candidates for the rest of specialties including diploma in anaesthesia, diploma in clinical pathology, medical radiology technology etc.

The entrance test for all specialties, including the DMRD, was conducted on Dec 29, 2023 wherein the son of the controller examination also appeared besides other candidates.

The official says the entire process of all the nine specialties was completed and final list of all the selected candidates was issued accordingly, including those who had qualified the interviews for the DMRD.

The top merit selected candidates deposited a fee Rs85,000 each and the FMU’s registrar issued a notification of commencement of classes from May 20, 2024. It shocked the affectees when the notification mentioned that all the selected candidates for the eight diploma courses would join the classes except those selected for DMRD.

“It is here notified that the diploma classes of all the specialties (except DMRD) will start from May 20, 2024,” reads the notification of the FMU.

Later it appeared that the FMU called the select students, conducted a new entrance test for admission to the DMRD and shortlisted nine of them, including the son of the controller examination, for interviews after passing the exam.

However, the university ignored the strong reservations and agitation of the top merit candidates selected in the previous process.

“We started a new process following the complaints that the candidates were awarded marks of choice during the previous entrance test,” FMU Vice Chancellor Prof Zafar Chaudhry told Dawn. He defended the new process, saying that in the previous tests, the candidates who were from the radiology department of the Allied Hospital Faisalabad were given 100pc marks to give them undue favour.

At this, the FMU rescheduled the admission process on the recommendations of a committee, which had probed the complaints.

To a question about the reservations of giving favour to the son of the controller examination who was enrolled again for house job despite completing the same from a private university, the VC said that university would take action in this regard if any merit violation would be reported.

On the other hand, FMU Controller Examination Dr Subhani confirmed to Dawn that his son was doing a second house job at the Allied Hospital Faisalabad.

“It was an additional house job to improve his skills and experience,” he said, adding that the matter had been left to the university for action in case of any violation committed in enrolling his son for a second house job. He refused to talk about the admission to the DMRD.

Published in Dawn, June 10th, 2024