The University of Karachi has removed its Controller of Examinations after around 150 law students were declared successful despite failing in the university’s initially issued results.
The KU exam controller, Dr Yasir, was taken off the post and replaced by Associate Professor Dr Syed Ghufran of the Department of Food Science. A formal inquiry into the suspected manipulation of results has yet to begin.
Why the KU exam controller was removed
The controversy centres on alleged changes to examination results during the two-month tenure of outgoing Vice Chancellor Tufail Jokhio, reportedly with his approval. About 150 students of SM Law College and Islamia Law College were declared successful in two subjects even though the university’s original results had marked them as failed.
According to reports, the examination department acted on a written recommendation from the Dean of the Faculty of Law, who sought scrutiny of the results. A purported scrutiny committee then passed the students.
University rules require students to file individual applications for scrutiny, and the annual examination system allows recounting of marks rather than rechecking of answer scripts. Former permanent Vice Chancellor Dr Khalid Iraqi had stopped the process during his tenure.
Both sides on record
Dr Yasir denied that any students were passed or failed through the process and declined further comment.
Dean of the Faculty of Law Barrister Sarfraz Mitlo defended the move, saying the committee was formed with the vice chancellor’s approval because the students had been treated unfairly. He said the scripts were re-examined in the presence of the principals of both colleges and the controller, adding that no student with zero marks was declared successful and that the rules permitted re-examination.
The allegations remain unproven, and no court or inquiry has yet ruled on the matter.
The shake-up follows a period of leadership churn at the university. Tufail Jokhio served only a brief two-month tenure as vice chancellor, during which the disputed results were issued, while former permanent VC Dr Khalid Iraqi had earlier halted the same process. The Controller of Examinations is one of the most sensitive administrative posts in any Pakistani university, controlling the issuance, scrutiny and correction of results for tens of thousands of students. When that office is seen to bend the rules, confidence in every degree the university issues takes a hit.
A wider pattern of exam controversies
The episode adds to a string of examination-related disputes in Pakistan’s education sector. Competitive exams have repeatedly come under scrutiny, from the KP civil judge exam where only 3 of 1,024 candidates passed to concerns flagged after the 9th class results in Punjab. The FPSC’s October exam schedule has also drawn attention from thousands of aspirants, while THE Rankings 2027 placed no Pakistani university in the world’s top 500.
What happens next
The university is expected to constitute a formal inquiry committee to examine how the results were altered and who authorised the changes. The findings could determine whether the affected results stand and whether disciplinary action follows against officials involved.
For the students caught in the middle, the outcome will decide the validity of their degrees and their path to the bar.
Read the original reporting on this story in The Express Tribune.
