The Islamabad High Court on Thursday permitted Shifa Tameer-e-Millat University (STMU) to conduct examination of Shifa College of Medicine from October 28. A single-member bench headed by Justice Athar Minallah resumed hearing on a case pertaining to Shifa College of Medicine.
During the course of proceeding, the court restored the notification related to the inclusion of Shifa Tameer-e-Millat University (STMU) and Shifa Medical College (SCM) in schedule '1'of Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC), which was suspended by the same bench.
The court also decided to conduct day-to-day hearing of the petition from Friday (today). Advocate Raja Saim-ul-Haq, counsel for STMU and SCM, contended that the Act of STMU and SCM was approved by the Parliament on March 06, 2012, adding that the SCM was considered as a main organ of STMU under the said act.
The counsel told the court SCM had applied for schedule '1' to the PMDC through an application but the PMDC did not accede to the request while at the moment more than 200 students were studying at SMC that is an allied institution of STMU. The SCM's students had received their credentials from Bahria University; however, after the approval of STMU Act by the Parliament in 2012 the SCM has been legally authorised to issue medical degrees to its students under the said Act.
He maintained the matter lingered on as the government has yet to issue notification in this regard, he added. He maintained that SCM was an allied institution of STMU and not awarding it the status of schedule '1' was discrimination. Secretary Ministry of National Health Services, Muhammad Ayub, informed the court that as per court directions, he had issued a notification on October 23 (Thrusday) for the appointment of nine nominees of federal government in PMDC. These nominees included Dr Muhammad Afzal Khan, provincial health secretaries of Sindh, Punjab, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Surgeon General of Armed Forces Medical Services, former justice Tariq Pervez, Director General Ministry of Health and former president of PMDC Professor Dr Sibtul Hasnain.
He said that the notification about the affiliation of the SCM with STMU was issued on October 15 by the federal government under which the SCM is considered main organ of the STMU and conducting examinations of the SCM's students through the Bahria University was declared illegal. The Secretary health further pleaded before the court to reconsider its previous order under which the notification was suspended as IHC vide its order W.P.No 3889 of 2014 directed Shifa College of Medicine to stop its medical and dental admissions until further orders. The court restored the notification related to the inclusion of Shifa Tameer-e-Millat University (STMU) and Shifa College of Medicines (SCM) in schedule '1'of Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) and adjourned further hearing till Friday.
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