PESHAWAR – The caretaker government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has declared the results of the National Medical and Dental Colleges Admission Test (MDCAT) void, and the exam will be re-conducted.
After the contentious decision of cabinet members, students staged protest outside Peshawar Press Club against the move to re-conduct the test.
Candidates who successfully passed the exam called it an injustice and said that the authorities bowed to those who failed to clear the exam.
The government decided to re-conduct MDCAT 2023 in the wake of allegations of massive cheating in the exam held earlier this month. Hundreds of students protested against the cheating scandal and called it a victory for the mafia.
Meanwhile, students also moved court, stating that they worked hard to pass the test and that retaking would be a disadvantage to talented students who had cleared the test the first time.
Candidates argued that there is no provision for the test to be retaken.
Earlier this month, over 40 candidates including 20 females wearing bluetooth devices in exam halls, during MDCAT 2023 were arrested. Police recovered Bluetooth devices from the medical aspirants during the test, while sevral cases were lodged.
Secretary of Higher Education Anila Durrani told media about a group that took big fat amounts from students to help them solve the test through secret Bluetooth devices.
The officials said thousands of rupees were paid by students solving paper through Bluetooth device. The authorities, however, busted the group, recovering their wireless devices.