Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed Dr Asim Hussain, former president Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) to ensure his presence before it personally or through a counsel being a central character in the entire episode of PMDC case.

A three-member Supreme Court bench comprising Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, Justice Mushir Alam and Justice Sajjad Ali Shah gave this direction while hearing a suo motu case along with a petition filed by PMDC against private medical colleges not observing merit during the admissions and charging exorbitant fees from the students.

Appearing on the court’s notice, Dr Asim Hussain, who is also a Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader and a former petroleum minister, contended that he did nothing wrong, however he was being maligned and politicized in the PMDC case.

The chief justice told him that whenever ills and malpractices of private medical colleges come under discussion, all the fingers point at him, thus he has to ensure his presence in the court personally or through a counsel to identify the faults of medical colleges and their solution.

Dr Asim stated that he belonged to a respectable family, whose four generations served the country in the field of medical education. He said his grandfather, Dr Ziauddin, who received his education from Aligarh University, had a lot of contributions in the medical sector of the country.

He said his father established a medical college in 1957, which is imparting quality medical education in the country. He said he too served as an orthopedic surgeon in public sector. He said he was standing before the court keeping aside the politics. He said he was also concerned over the sorry state of affairs in the medical colleges.

The chief justice asked him to assist the court to point out ills in the medical colleges and bring improvements, irrespective of the fact that whether he was responsible of these ills or not.

The chief justice noted that the court did not know politics and will not indulge into it, however warned that no one will be spared if found guilty of any wrong doing.

He recalled that it is said that during the tenure of Dr Asim as PMDC chairman people were given permission to open private medical colleges in return for bags filled with Rs200 million each, adding that during the hearing of the medical colleges’ case in Lahore, people pointed fingers at Dr Asim, thus he would have to explain his position.

He said the court was looking into the lack of merit in the admission policy of private medical colleges and consequent downfall of medical colleges. Dr Asim then stated that the result of Ziauddin Medical College was at the top at the world level with 83 percent.

The chief justice then asked Dr Asim that he would be asked about this result too, as it is said that Ziauddin College present the figures of its result beyond the real.

Muhammad Akram Sheikh, counsel for PMDC, stated that the admission process of medical colleges discourages the students from rural areas on the pretext of entry test. He said the officials involved in getting the entry tests have turned into the ‘entry test mafia’, as they have their own academies for preparation of the entry test, where they charge exorbitant fees, which the poor candidates from rural areas cannot afford.

He said the candidates are often rejected in interviews keeping aside their academic career and abilities, adding that a single interview overshadows the entire academic career and ability of the candidates, which not legitimate in any manner. He said the laws and regulations governing the medical education should be examined and reviewed as it was the matter of 210 million people.

Published in Daily Times, January 11^th 2018.