Pakistan’s medical regulator ordered universities and colleges on September 1 to send enrolled Afghan medical and dental students home, while barring new admissions, transfers and migrations of Afghan nationals for the current academic year. More than 200 Afghan students are enrolled in Pakistan’s medical and dental colleges, and students say many received eviction notices with less than three days to leave.
Students say registration gap was not their responsibility
The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council said foreign students must be registered with the regulator. Students interviewed at colleges in Lahore and Rawalpindi said they were admitted through Pakistan’s Higher Education Commission and the Pakistani embassy in Kabul, and that universities handled registration submissions. They said no Pakistani agency or college told them that PMDC registration was incomplete. Related coverage: Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan Resigns After Weeks of Student Protests.
Students also linked the dispute to changes in Pakistan’s medical regulatory system. The previous regulator, the Pakistan Medical Commission, was established in 2019, but the Islamabad High Court restored the PMDC in 2022 and declared the commission’s formation illegal. Students admitted during that transition said their registration remained caught in a backlog.
Notices have interrupted classes and hospital shifts
Students described different responses from their colleges. Some institutions issued eviction notices and gave students as little as 24 hours to clear hostel rooms. A final-year student in Lahore said she had been barred from lectures and hospital shifts, while another student said her college stopped counting attendance after treating Afghan students as expelled. A college in Peshawar had not issued an eviction notice when the student was interviewed.
The PMDC directive also prevents institutions from facilitating transfers or migrations for Afghan students. Students said that removes a possible route to complete their degrees elsewhere, including for those only months from graduation. They said they entered Pakistan on student visas and did not intend to remain after completing their studies.
Government and rights groups disagree over the order
Afghanistan’s Taliban government called the decision inhumane and said its Ministry of Higher Education was ready to help returning students continue their studies. Human Rights Watch condemned the order, while two former Pakistani ambassadors to Afghanistan urged the government to reconsider it and allow students to finish their degrees. Read the context: Challenges Facing Male Students Under Taliban Rule in Afghanistan’s Education System.
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Sajjad Haider Khan said students with valid visas who are registered in a degree programme are supposed to remain in the country and complete their studies. He did not explain the difference between that position and the notices reported by students. The Higher Education Commission did not respond to questions, and the PMDC referred questions to its public statement.
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