Overview
- The Lahore High Court ordered a temporary suspension of a Pakistan Medical and Dental Council notification after a petition by Central Park Medical College, with Justice Khalid Ishaq halting the rule while the court examines its legality.
- Central Park’s lawyer argued the PMDC had no power to allow a five percent annual fee rise or to link charges to the Consumer Price Index, and the court will now consider whether such changes require parliamentary action.
- Separately, the PMDC withdrew its July framework that extended the Bachelor of Dental Surgery to five years and confirmed the BDS will remain a four‑year degree with a mandatory one‑year clerkship, PMDC President Dr Rizwan Taj said.
- The PMDC Examination Department directed universities to collect MDCAT question papers immediately after tests, a move raising transparency concerns about how candidates can flag ambiguous or incorrect questions for review before results are final.
- If the court upholds the suspension, students could avoid automatic fee increases while private colleges may face budget pressure, and the ruling could force Parliament or the PMDC to clarify who may set tuition and under what legal process.