ISLAMABAD, President Dr Arif Alvi on Sunday, on complaint of a medical student facing denial by his institution to appear in examinations, said the aggrieved could invoke a relevant clause of Pakistan Medical Commission (PMC) that gave universities a prerogative to allow students as many retakes.
Complainant Sarbuland Khan had filed a representation with the President of Pakistan assailing the order of Wafaqi Mohtasib, which had upheld the decision of Mohammad Medical College, Mirpurkhas, on grounds that the case was time.
The complainant had mentioned that he had failed twice in the second year’s paper of Biochemistry, and under the rules had four chances to pass the examination. However, he could not avail the third and fourth chances as the medical college did not intimate him timely and also had banned his entry into the institution.
He prayed that if he was not given a chance to appear in the examination, then the medical college be directed to refund his paid fee Rs.1,500,000 with seven years interest. He also requested for rechecking of Biochemistry paper, wherein he had failed lack of one mark.
The Wafaqi Mohtasib in its order said no maladministration on part of the Agency (medical college) was evident and the assertion of the complainant for the four-time limit under Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) stood repealed after the PMC Act came into force on 24.09.2020.
The president, in his decision, referred to a notification of PMC’s (Admissions, Curriculum and Conduct) Regulations, 2021, that explained on how the university could allow the students to retake the examinations.
The President referred to Rule 16 (1) from notification’s Chapter-IV which empowers universities to frame their own regulations for allowing failed students to retake professional examinations, to publicly notify such regulations and make available to the students.”
He also mentioned Rule 16 (2) which states “A university may allow a student as many retakes as may be determined by the university subject to no student being required to pay to the college tuition fee in addition to the fee paid for the given year. A retake exam fee may be charged as may be determined by the university subject to being a reasonable fee commensurate with the taking of an examination.”
He quoted Rule 16 (3) which states that “no student shall be allowed to repeat a year after having failed in a profession exam. Either a student qualifies their professional exam through retakes offered by the university or shall be expelled from the program on failure to qualify.”
The President said “there was no fault with the orders passed by the Wafaqi Mohtasib”, however the complainant, if desired, could invoke the said clause.
“If so desired, the complainant may take a chance of invoking the above mentioned R.16 before the competent authority for redressal of his grievance,” he wrote, disposing of the representation.
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