' IJAZ-UL-AHSAN, J. --- Through this single order, we propose to decide W.P. No. 3011-2014, W.P. No. 37052014, W.P. No. 3549-2014 and W.P. No. 1243-2014 as common questions of law and facts have been raised through these petitions.
2. Briefly stated the facts of the case are that the petitioners, who are children of expatriate Pakistanis, were granted admission in Sargodha Medical College in December/January, 2014. They deposited the requisite fee and other charges on being issued fee challans. However, on 28.01.2014, they received office order No. UOS/SMC/513, dated 28.01.2014 from the Principal, University of Sargodha informing them that their provisional admission had been cancelled on account of non- confirmation of their seats by respondent No. 5 Higher Education Commission, Islamabad. The petitioners have approached this Court complaining that the action of respondent No. 4 whereby he has cancelled the admission of the petitioners was unlawful and without just cause.
4. The learned counsel for the petitioners submits that the admission of the petitioners could not have been cancelled in view of the fact that they were selected on merit and after due process.
The petitioners deposited fee, hostel charges and fees payable to Pakistan Medical & Dental College (PM&DC) and University of Health Sciences. For all intents and purposes, they were bona fide students of the college and their admission could not have been cancelled arbitrarily and without just cause. It is further submitted that the undertaking relied upon by respondent No. 5 was never signed and the stance taken by the university that their admission was only provisional subject to confirmation of their seats by the Higher Education Commission is against the record. It is submitted that acts of respondent No. 5 are violative of fundamental rights of the petitioners, which envisage equal opportunity of education for all classes of people. It is finally argued that the petitioners were condemned unheard. They were never given any opportunity of placing their version on record and the action of respondent No. 5 is violative of the principle of audi alteram partem.
4. Notice was issued to the respondents as well as the Higher Education Commission, who have entered appearance and filed parawise comments. PM&DC and University of Health Sciences are also represented. The stance taken by the Higher Education Commission is that for the purpose of admission to medical colleges, seats have been allocated for foreign students/dual nationals (children of expatriate Pakistanis). Twenty seats were allocated to Sargodha Medical College, University of Sargodha. However, there is a specific procedure provided for admission against such seats. He has explained that the procedure is that the University of Health Sciences advertises availability of seats through Pakistan Embassies/High Commissions in different countries and also on its website inviting application for admission against such seats. The applications are placed before a committee constituted by the University of Health Sciences which processes the applications and makes recommendations to different medical colleges to grant admission to such candidates. It is emphasized on behalf of the Higher Education Commission that this is the only mode and manner adopted for the purpose of admission against seats reserved for foreign/dual nationals/expatriate Pakistanis. He argues that medical colleges have no power or lawful authority to grant admission directly to any foreign student/dual national against a reserved seat unless he/she is recommended by the aforesaid committee. Any admission directly granted by any medical college/university against expatriate/dual national Pakistanis against seats reserved for them is unlawful and the Higher Education Commission/PM&DC and the University of Health Sciences are justified in refusing to register such students or permitting them to appear in the examination. In this regard, the learned counsel has placed on record various relevant notifications, exchange of correspondence and criteria for admission of foreign students/expatriate/dual national Pakistanis under Self-Finance Scheme for the Session 2013-14. All the said documents have been examined and substantiate the stance taken by Higher Education Commission.
5. On facts, it is pointed out that the Higher Education Commission had recommended twenty students against twenty available seats at Sargodha Medical College under the Self-Finance Scheme. The said twenty students have since been admitted and adjusted in the college. In case, the petitioners were granted admission by Sargodha Medical College directly without due process and without undergoing the scrutiny of the Admission Committee of the Higher Education Commission, the admissions are patently illegal. This is a dispute between the students and the medical college. As far as the Higher Education Commission as well as University of Health Sciences is concerned, their rules and regulations do not permit recognition of such admission.
6. The learned counsels for the University of Health Sciences as well as PM&DC have adopted the arguments of the learned counsel for the Higher Education Commission.
7. The learned Deputy Attorney General, who is also present in this matter, has also supported the stance taken by the Higher Education Commission.
8. We have heard the learned counsel for the parties at considerable length and examined the record with their assistance.
9. The only question requiring determination by this Court is whether the petitioners, who were admittedly granted admission by the Sargodha Medical College, University of Sargodha directly and without involvement of University of Health Sciences or the Higher Education Commission, can claim registration and to be treated as validly admitted students. On hearing the learned counsel for the parties and examination of record, our answer to the said question is in the negative for the following reasons:--- ' In Pakistan, admissions to medical and dental colleges are covered by a notification issued by the Government of Punjab, Health Department on 30th July, 2013, which spells out the criteria for such admissions. In order to accommodate foreign students/dual nationals and children of expatriate Pakistanis, some seats in each medical college have been allocated under the Self-Finance Scheme in the policy. The students wishing to study medicine/dentistry in a medical institution in Pakistan are required to submit their applications in the prescribed form to the Higher Education Commission through the Pakistan Embassy or in case of applicants of Pakistan origin, such applications can be sent directly to the Higher Education Commission. The Higher Education Commission processes the applications to determine merit, compliance with the requirements, educational backgrounds and equivalence of qualifications etc. This exercise is undertaken by the Admission Board. The Admission Board recommends students for admission through the Higher Education Commission, which sends their names to different medical/dental colleges on payment of fee and other charges. Students granted admission on the afore-noted criteria are registered by the University of Health Sciences for the purpose of sitting for examination. This is the only methodology followed by the Higher Education Commission and the University of Health Sciences for admission of foreign students under self-finance scheme because such admissions are undertaken without meeting the criteria and fulfilling the requirements which are mandatory for local students for admission on general merit which includes sitting for a centralized admission test;
(ii) The Higher Education Commission had allocated 20 seats to Sargodha Medical College where foreign students could be admitted on its recommendations under the self-finance scheme. It is common ground between the parties that the petitioners never applied to the Higher Education Commission for admission under the self-finance scheme. In fact, pursuant to an advertisement published by Sargodha Medical College, they submitted their applications directly and were admitted in the college without fulfilling the criteria spelt out above by the Higher Education Commission. It may further be noted that the Higher Education Commission recommended the names of twenty students who had applied by following the prescribed procedure. The Admission Board recommended their names and they were granted admission against twenty seats allocated to Sargodha Medical College. Therefore, there were no available seats under the self- finance scheme against which the petitioners could be adjusted;
(iii) It is clear and obvious that Sargodha Medical College granted admission to the petitioners incompetently and in violation of the rules and regulations without involving the Higher Education Commission, Pakistan Medical & Dental Council or University of Health Sciences. These are the three regulatory bodies responsible to regulate admissions and other educational activities involving the provision of medical and dentistry education in Pakistan. After having granted admissions to the petitioners, an effort was made on the part of Sargodha Medical College to get the admissions "regularized". This was refused by the Higher Education Commission for valid reasons. On such refusal, the petitioners, who ' claim to have attended classes for about a month, were informed that their admissions which were provisional in nature, had been cancelled and that they would be entitled to refund of all their fee under the rules. We have asked the learned counsel for the petitioners to explain how the admission could be justified when the procedure prescribed by the Higher Education Commission has not been followed. He has not been able to assign a cogent or logical response;
(iv) Medical and dental education is a sensitive and highly competitive field of professional education. For the said purpose, it is highly regulated and an effort is made to allow only the best students to be admitted in the medical and dental colleges, who possess the requisite academic background, merit, skill and aptitude. These factors are tested at various stages through a centralized testing mechanism put in place by the University of Health Sciences and the Higher Education Commission. However, at the same time, in order to accommodate foreign nationals, dual nationals and expatriate Pakistanis, a limited number of seats have been allocated to different medical colleges where such students can be accommodated without going through the process in place for local students. However, even in that category where foreign students are allowed admission on self-finance basis, Admission Board has been set up which makes an effort to judge, confirm, verify and assess the merit of each student, who applies to it and on the basis of its assessm ent makes a recommendation for admission against seats allocated for foreign students in the self-finance scheme. The petitioners, have, however not gone through the process either for local students or for foreign students on self-finance basis. They have bypassed the said mechanism and have been granted admission by the University of Sargodha on its own volition on its understanding that it will manage to get their admission regularized after they are admitted to Sargodha Medical College. An effort was made to get their admission "regularized" which did not succeed for the reason that there was no room for post facto regularization by the Higher Education Commission. We, therefore, find that the admission granted by Sargodha Medical College to the petitioners without involving the Higher Education Commission and getting applications routed through the mechanism put in place, was illegal and violative of the relevant rules and regulations.
(v) We are mindful of the fact that the petitioners may not be at fault in this situation. Sargodha Medical College appears to be directly responsible for the plight of the students who find themselves in a difficult situation of cancellation of their admissions.
' We have asked the learned counsel for the Higher Education Commission to seek instructions if the relevant rules, regulations and laws provide a procedure whereby admission of student of this category can be regularized. He has categorically stated that no such procedure is provided under the law. He further submits that the Higher Education Commission is advertising availability of seats in different medical colleges for the next academic year in July, 2014. The petitioners may be encouraged, if they are interested, to apply to the Higher Education Commission for the next academic year. Their applications will be processed by the Admission Board and in case they meet the merit, they will be accommodated against the available seats. He has, however, vehemently stated that besides the fact that there is no procedure, rule or regulation that may help the petitioners in getting their admissions regularized, any exception would set a bad precedent in a matter, which is highly sensitive and relates to medical and dental education which should not be subjected to any exception of this nature. The practice of making exceptions are likely to be misused by unscrupulous institutions.
' In view of our findings that the students are not at fault and the admissions in question were granted by Sargodha Medical College in violation of the rules, of which they were aware, and had made an effort to rectify the wrong by approaching the Higher Education Commission seeking regularization of the admission of the students, we hold that Sargodha Medical College has acted recklessly, irresponsibly, and in violation of the rules. We, therefore, direct the Higher Education Commission to inquire into this matter and take appropriate action against those responsible for the afore-noted illegal actions which have caused hardship to the petitioners. At the same time we direct the Higher Education Commission to issue parent warnings and place the requisite information on its website to facilitate foreign students, dual nationals and expatriate Pakistanis, who wish to join medical/dental institutions on self-finance basis to familiarize themselves of the admission requirements and procedures. It must be highlighted that medical colleges/ universities cannot grant direct admissions and that such admissions if granted are not recognized by the Higher Education Commission or the University of Health Services. The only channel for such admission is to apply through Higher Education . Commission. Further the Higher Education Commission being regulator should be vigilant and strict. It should take prompt action against medical and dental colleges which grant such illegal and unlawful admissions.
10. In view of the foregoing, we direct the Sargodha Medical College to refund the entire fee alongwith hostel charges recovered from the petitioners within fifteen days of this order, to the students who shall be at liberty to file fresh applications as and when the same are invited by the Higher Education Commission for admissions to the next academic session for seats reserved for foreign students under the self-finance scheme. If such applications are received, the Higher Education Commission shall process the same in accordance with law.
11. For reasons recorded above, these petitions fails and are disposed of in the afore-noted terms.