The Supreme Court has been informed by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) that 3,997 students from law colleges affiliated with Bahauddin Zakariya University (BZU) in Multan are suspected of being ‘non-genuine’. These students attempted to take the Bachelor of Laws (LLB) exam without attending classes.
According to an FIA report, a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) of officials from the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) and Higher Education Commission (HEC) interrogated BZU officials and law college owners as per the court’s orders. After examining BZU’s records, the team identified 3,997 students as potential non-genuine candidates. An additional 2,230 students are under investigation.
The JIT recommended that a case be registered against responsible BZU officials and law colleges. It also suggested improving the system of law college affiliation, student registration, fee deposition, and attendance to prevent future fraud.
An initial inquiry revealed that BZU’s registration branch shared data of 11,396 students with the Controller Examination for the LLB Part-I second annual exam of 2019. Out of these, 6,227 students were allowed to sit for the exam, while 5,169 were prohibited. The Controller Examination of BZU considered these students as non-genuine.
Collusion within the BZU registration branch facilitated this fraudulent activity. The list of 5,169 students was categorized based on discovered irregularities.
Following a Supreme Court order, JIT visited law colleges, interviewed students and the BZU administration, formed a new affiliation committee, and obtained records to identify fake or ghost law colleges. It was found that 26 were ghost colleges and their remaining students were likely non-genuine.
In a previous report, FIA mentioned fake fee vouchers from Muhammadan Law College in Multan and Pakistan Law College in Pakpattan. JIT collected fee receipts from all law colleges deposited with BZU for registration and examination purposes.
Only nine law colleges complied with JIT’s written notice to submit fee vouchers for students under investigation. The team verified the details and qualifications of 6,227 students according to admission criteria and exam eligibility.
Attendance records were also examined, revealing some students to be government employees in other districts, making it impossible for them to attend law college. Additionally, the attendance sheet appeared to be fabricated, leading to the conclusion that all colleges prepared fake attendance sheets.
Source: Pro Pakistani