SOUTH WAZIRISTAN: Former MPA Nasirullah Khan Wazir has moved the Peshawar High Court against the “discriminatory and unjust” allocation of medical college seats for students from Upper and Lower South Waziristan districts.
In the petition, Mr Wazir contended that the provincial government had failed to ensure a fair distribution of MBBS and BDS seats in colleges for the two districts, depriving deserving students of their constitutional and legal rights.
“This injustice has placed the academic future of many capable students at serious risk,” he said.
The former MPA maintained that Upper and Lower South Waziristan were duly notified separate districts but still, their students continued to face discrimination during the allocation of medical college seats.
He argued that such treatment violated the constitutional principles of equality, justice and equal opportunity, and undermined the rights of students from the region.
The petitioner said following Fata’s merger with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the tribal region was constitutionally entitled to the rights and facilities enjoyed by other districts of the province.
He, however, said despite the legal and constitutional framework, students from both districts had been consistently overlooked, particularly in the field of higher education and medical admissions.
“The flawed quota system has resulted in a situation where hardworking and talented students, who qualify competitive entrance examinations despite limited resources and difficult circumstances, are denied admission solely due to the unfair distribution of seats.”
Mr Wazir argued that the systemic neglect had not only affected individual students but had also hindered the long-term development of the region.
He said the existing quota mechanism had caused serious injustice to the youth of both tribal districts.
The lawmaker claimed that every year, dozens of deserving students were denied their right to pursue medical education under the MBBS and BDS programmes.
“Such deprivation negatively impacts the overall healthcare infrastructure of the region, which already suffers from a shortage of qualified medical professionals,” he said.
Mr Wazir sought the court’s orders for authorities to ensure a fair, transparent and constitutionally compliant allocation of medical seats for Lower and Upper South Waziristan.
He sought the restoration of separate medical college quotas for both districts, like other districts, especially tribal ones.
The lawmaker named the provincial government, health department and other authorities as respondents in the petition.
Meanwhile, Mr Wazir told reporters that on Oct 14, 2022, the then provincial government split South Waziristan district into Upper South Waziristan and Lower South Waziristan districts.
He said earlier, South Waziristan used to be allocated 40-42 medical college seats.
“Following the bifurcation, both South Waziristan districts should get equal medical seats like other districts, especially the tribal ones,” he said.
Published in Dawn, January 9th, 2026
