' AYESHA A. MALIK, J.---Through this petition, the petitioner seeks a direction to the respondents for the grant of admission in the M.B.B.S. Programme in D.G. Khan., Medical College
2. The brief facts of the case are that the petitioner applied for admission to a medical college in Punjab. As per the on requirement, she filled up the form listing her preferences for admission in the medical colleges. She mentioned the names of 15 colleges and failed to mention the, name of the 16th college being D.G. Khan Medical College. At the time, when the merit list was announced, the petitioner was not eligible for admission in the 15 colleges but in terms of her merit, she became eligible for admission in D.G. Khan Medical College.
3. The grievance of the petitioner is that she had the required merit for admission in D.G Khan Medical College. However, she was refused admission on the ground that she did not mention the said college as one of her preference in the form submitted for this purpose.
4. Learned counsel for the petitioner argued that the petitioner has a right to education and that she meets the merit requirements of D.G. Khan Medical College. Therefore, the college has wrongly denied her admission. He argued that the petitioner mentioned 15 colleges out of a total 16 colleges on the preference form and that D.G. Khan Medical College was the only one college that had not been mentioned in the preference form by the petitioner. He argued that it was an inadvertent mistake by the petitioner and given that it is the 16th medical college, it should be deemed as being her sixteenth choice. Hence, the learned counsel for the petitioner argued that this Court may direct the respondents to grant admission to the petitioner.
5. Learned counsel for the respondent-University argued that the prospectus and the admission form clearly provide that each candidate must provide a list of Medical and Dental Colleges that he or she wishes to get admission. He argued that the choice is binding on the candidate and that it cannot be subsequently changed. The list of preference requires the candidates to state their preference and they are considered for admission only in terms of the list of preference provided by them. Since the petitioner did not opt for D.G. Khan Medical College, she was not considered by the stated college and for the purposes of admission it is irrelevant that she has the merit for the said college. He relied upon the provision of prospectus session 2012-2013 given at serial (e), which provides as follows:-- "An applicant, under no circumstances, shall be considered for a college, he/she has not named in his/her order of preferences. The admitting Authority shall not assign a college by itself if the alternate choices are not indicated."
' He has also produced copy of the admission form in Court and argued that the preference requirement is provided in red colour in the admission form to highlight its importance and to ensure that it is not overlooked by any candidate. He explained that if the petitioner is granted admission to a college, which she has not 'stated as a preference, it will have an adverse effect on the entire admission process as the admission is granted on the basis of the preferences stated by the candidates. Furthermore, he explained that the petitioner can apply again for the next session and may be considered for admission in the next session of the M.B.B.S classes. He has also placed reliance on an unreported order dated 16-2-2010 passed in Writ Petition No,1527 of 2010 and judgment dated 21-1-2013 passed in Writ Petition No,406 of 2013 wherein a similar issue was raised and the writ petitions were dismissed.
6. Heard learned counsel for the parties and reviewed the record available on the file.
7. The issue before us is whether the petitioner can be considered for admission in D.G. Khan Medical College, even though she had not listed it as her preference in the list of preferences. The prospectus provides for college choice, which specifically stipulates that candidates are to provide the list of names of the colleges that they would like to consider for admission. This list of preference cannot be subsequently changed. The prospectus provides that the candidates will be considered for admission in accordance with list of preferences and the candidates will be assessed and ranked according to the merit for each college. The relevant portion of the prospectus in this regard provides that under no circumstances, shall a applicant be considered for admission to a College that he/she has not named in his/her order of preferences. We have also reviewed the admission form produced in Court by the learned counsel for the respondents.
On the titled form List of Preferences was typed in red colour that the candidates will only be considered for admission in the colleges stated as its preference and that no candidate shall be considered for admission to a college, which they have not shown as their preferences. To our mind, the matter has been provided for in the prospectus as well as in the admission form. The petitioner was aware at the time of filling the form that she had to mention every college that she wanted to be considered for admission. The argument that even though she has not mentioned the name of D.G. Khan Medical College, it should be deemed as being the 16th preference because there were only sixteen choices in which admission could have been granted to the petitioner does not find favour with us given that the prospectus and the admission form are clear at stating and highlighting, the importance of the preference form. There is no basis upon which this Court can direct the respondents to consider the petitioner for admission to a College which is not stated in her of preference. We are of the opinion that the petitioner took a conscious decision at the time of filling of the form, hence she is now bound by it and that no right is prejudiced as she can always apply in the next academic session of admissions.
8. In view of the above, this petition is dismissed.