Double Domicile Scandal: Non-local Candidates Gain Admission to Karachi Medical Colleges

A significant revelation has surfaced regarding the admission of over 100 candidates with dual domiciles in Karachi’s medical colleges. These candidates, hailing from various districts of Sindh, Punjab, and the federal territories, have managed to secure seats by using Karachi’s domicile, despite their educational background being from other regions.

Many of these candidates had initially attempted to gain admission to medical colleges in interior Sindh based on different district domiciles last year but were unable to due to the high competition and limited seats. However, this year, they successfully obtained Karachi domiciles, primarily from District East, and secured spots in Karachi’s medical colleges. A majority of these candidates had completed their intermediate and matriculation education outside of Karachi.

An important official from Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences, which oversees the merit list at the provincial level, confirmed that some of the candidates, who initially held domiciles from Punjab, later managed to acquire Sindh domiciles. This allowed them to gain admission to medical universities in Karachi and interior Sindh, leaving deserving candidates from the region deprived. The university officials further discovered the discrepancies after cross-checking the candidates’ national identity card numbers, revealing the existence of dual domiciles due to Punjab’s online domicile system.

While Sindh’s domicile system remains offline, making it harder to detect dual domiciles, there have been numerous complaints from Karachi regarding candidates who had previously held domiciles from interior Sindh districts and completed their education outside Karachi. These candidates have now successfully gained admission by obtaining Karachi domiciles.

The controversy has raised serious concerns about the fairness of the admission process. Due to the provincial government’s domicile policy, candidates who completed their education in Karachi, including A-Level, O-Level, and matriculation, have been significantly disadvantaged, while students from other provinces and regions are now occupying the seats in Karachi’s medical colleges.

In a case highlighted in the reports, a top-ranking candidate who secured admission at Dow Medical University had completed both her matriculation and intermediate studies from Islamabad’s board and had a permanent address in Rawalpindi. Despite this, she obtained a Karachi domicile and gained admission into the prestigious medical college.