ISLAMABAD: The head of the legal department of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) has approached prominent offices, including the Prime Minister’s Office, over alleged violations of rules, corruption and corrupt practices in the council.

According to the official, the legal department is handling over 6,000 court cases due to alleged mismanagement.

The allegations include an exorbitant increase in professional fees/charges for external lawyers from the PMDC budget, facilitating corrupt practices, violations of PPRA rules and forcing 15 permanent and temporary officers to “work from home” while not allowing them to enter the office.

However, Registrar PMDC Dr Rehan Naqvi said that all decisions were being made purely on merit and in accordance with rules. He also said the director legal stayed in the council for almost two weeks only, so his objections and allegations were irrelevant.

Application claims inflated legal fees, forced remote work and over 6,000 pending cases; registrar rejects allegations as baseless

The application, sent to the PM Office, health minister, secretary health, Supreme Court HR Cell, PAC, etc., and available with Dawn, alleges that the registrar enhanced professional fees for external lawyers by up to 100 per cent without any consent, authorisation, or note sheet from the concerned office, i.e. the legal department of PMDC, thus causing continuous financial loss to the public exchequer.

The registrar has also been accused of aiding and facilitating corrupt practices with a PMDC lawyer who allegedly issued bogus fee invoices for legal cases.

“This malpractice was highlighted by the finance department in Feb 2026. Considering its seriousness, the undersigned suggested to the management to issue an explanation letter to the concerned lawyer through the legal department. However, Dr Rehan opposed this action and stopped the undersigned, which is revealing his support and favour for corrupt practices,” the applicant, who has been fired by the PMDC management, alleged.

It has been claimed that, without the knowledge of the president and council members, the registrar used to force subordinate officers to address him in official communications as the “competent authority,” and he was consistently approving official note sheets without referring them to the president, as required by law.

The application also claimed that around 15 permanent and temporary officers of PMDC have been forced to work from home and that the registrar was not allowing them to enter the office due to a personal grudge, which is causing unrest and anxiety among officers.

It further alleged that Dr Rehan terminated a number of officers from service in violation of the Employee Service Regulations 2023, which resulted in massive litigation against PMDC. Some officers were later restored by the courts with strict directions, which was embarrassing for the council.

Registrar PMDC Dr Rehan Naqvi, in a written response to Dawn, said that all proceedings were being carried out purely on merit and in accordance with rules and regulations, and after the perusal of the president and the council.

He also claimed that all decision-making was being done by the council.

He reiterated that the director legal stayed in PMDC for almost two weeks only, excluding holidays and therefore his objections and allegations were irrelevant.

Published in Dawn, May 4th, 2026