A proper investigation
should be made immediately on this vital issue. If the allegations of the admission seekers are proved, then the admission tests should be cancelled and fresh admission tests should be taken for the sake of fairness and accountability
Deal carefully with medical admission seekers
At least 15 medical admission seekers were injured on Wednesday as police baton charged them at Karwan Bazar while they were demonstrating demanding the retaking of the MBBS and BDS admission tests after cancelling the results of the previous ones. The protesters alleged that law enforcers resorted to beating them up and spraying pepper spray on them. Police, however, denied the allegations. A report on this appeared in this newspaper yesterday. The medical admission seekers have been carrying on agitation since September 19, the day after the admission tests, complaining that many candidates got the questions through Facebook, WhatsApp, and other social media.
Leak of questions is nothing new in our country. This kind of malpractice occurred in the past also. A section of corrupt people in collusion with those in authority are responsible for this practice. Meritorious students have cogent reasons to feel aggrieved and infuriated by this. That a student will get chance of studying medical science not by dint of his or her proven merit but by resorting to illegal means is not acceptable in a democratic country.
The government should handle this sensitive issue with care. A proper investigation should be made immediately on this vital issue. If the allegations of the admission seekers are proved, then the admission tests should be cancelled and fresh admission tests should be taken for the sake of fairness and accountability.
Police actions against the admission seekers for subduing agitation will not augur well. This will rather complicate the situation. The agitations by the students are taking their toll on the city-dwellers. The same are creating severe traffic jams in the city, putting the commuters and others to a lot of sufferings. A few days back, the demonstrations by students of private universities demanding withdrawal of VAT almost paralysed the capital. The residents of the city bore the brunt of the situation. Finally, the authorities withdrew it and the students stopped their agitation.
The government, particularly the Health Ministry and the Directorate of Health Services, should take quick and pragmatic decisions regarding the medical admission seekers. If the investigation reveals leak of questions, the persons responsible for the misdeed should be brought under justice.
