LAHORE, March 8: Medical students protested on Thursday for six hours against the University of Health Science (UHS) for, what they say flawed results of MBBS 2nd Professional Annual 2011.

A spokesperson for the UHS alleged that protesters turned violent and ransacked UHS offices, tortured security guards and chanted slogans against the vice-chancellor and other senior teachers. Police, however, say students remained peaceful.

Spokesperson for the UHS Muhammad Atif condemned the “excessive measure” by the protesters, particularly leaders of the Young Doctors Association (YDA), saying the violent protest was against the norms, values and ethics of medical profession.

Witnesses said students gathered outside the UHS at 11am and raised slogans against the varsity administration for not awarding ‘relaxations’ to them. Their agitation turned into a ‘movement’ when YDA activists joined them a couple of hours later. Protesters forced their entry into the UHS and also tortured a few security guards.

Students dispersed at 7:30pm after negotiations with Deputy Health Secretary Dr Bilal Ahmad who assured them that the government would resolve the issue through a committee of senior officials. He also asked the representatives of the students to nominate six people to represent them on the committee.

Iqbal Town SP (Operations) Abdul Ghafar Kasrani said that initially protest remained peaceful. However, with the arrival of Punjab YDA leaders, protesters dodged police and managed to enter the premises of the UHS. He said the students remained peaceful even after entering the UHS building and continued protest there for hours.

The UHS vice-chancellor was not confined to his office, he said.