Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Karachi chief Monem Zafar Khan on Friday demanded that the top 100 candidates in the Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT) 2026 should be retested by an independent body amid allegations of irregularities and mismanagement.In a letter to Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) President Dr Rizwan Taj, Monem Zafar expressed serious concerns over the conduct of the examination, raising questions about its transparency and fairness. He called for an independent review of complaints lodged by students.

The JI leader said around 9,500 candidates in Karachi had been accommodated at only two examination centres, both located on University Road, describing the arrangement as poor management. In comparison, he said, 19 centres had been established in Peshawar and six in Lahore.He said Karachi candidates had been forced to travel long distances to reach the examination centres, causing inconvenience to students and their families. Monem Zafar also questioned the decision to assign responsibility for conducting the examination to IBA Sukkur and said instructions to take back examination papers had raised further concerns about transparency.

He said serious objections had been raised over the answer keys for Biology, Chemistry and Physics, with specific complaints also concerning the answer keys for paper codes A and D. The JI Karachi chief demanded an independent and transparent investigation into concerns about possible alterations to the results, urging the PMDC to address students’ grievances and restore confidence in the examination system. He further called on the council to provide a transparent account of the funds collected for the examination, claiming that more than Rs1.26 billion had been received in connection with MDCAT. 

Criticising the examination arrangements, Monem Zafar said students had been asked to arrive in the morning but were made to wait for several hours in the heat. Keeping candidates seated for up to eight hours, he said, was inappropriate and distressing for students.He urged the PMDC to conduct an impartial and transparent investigation into the MDCAT 2026 controversy and take concrete steps to address students’ legitimate concerns.

Earlier, Federal Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal directed the PMDC to investigate complaints regarding the transparency and fairness of MDCAT 2026 in Sindh.The Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination had written to PMDC President Dr Rizwan Taj following media reports questioning the fairness of the examination and complaints circulating on social media.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)