KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Pakistan’s Lahore High Court on Friday suspended directives from the country’s medical regulator ordering Afghan medical and dental students to return to Afghanistan, allowing them to continue their studies for now, according to local media.
According to DAWN, Justice Khalid Ishaq issued the order while hearing petitions filed by 13 Afghan students enrolled at institutions in Lahore, including King Edward Medical University, Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Medical and Dental College, and the Services Institute of Medical Sciences.
The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) had issued the directive on Sept. 1, ordering Afghan students in Pakistani colleges “to return to Afghanistan.” It also barred medical and dental colleges from granting admission or placement to Afghan students for the current academic session. A similar directive had been issued on July 31.
The students, seven women and six men, filed their petitions on Thursday after being removed from their colleges on the PMDC’s instructions. They argued that the council and the colleges lacked legal authority to expel them and that the moves violated their rights, the report said.
PMDC lawyer opposed the suspension, arguing the matter involved national security. Justice Ishaq rejected that argument, suspended the operation of both the Sept. 1 and July 31 directives, and ordered that the students be allowed to continue their education, sit examinations and return to their hostels, according to the report.
The judge also sought replies from the PMDC, the Pakistani health ministry and the vice-chancellors of the universities and colleges involved, scheduling the next hearing for Sept. 18.
One petitioner, Nilofar Nikzad, said she had completed two years of medical studies in Afghanistan before abandoning her education because of Taliban restrictions on women’s access to education. Several petitioners also hold scholarships under Pakistan’s Higher Education Commission-sponsored Allama Iqbal Scholarship Program, the report added.
The PMDC directives had drawn criticism from rights groups, including the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, which warned the move could create a humanitarian problem for students already enrolled. Human Rights Watch said the order particularly threatened Afghan women, while Amnesty International described it as “patently discriminatory and arbitrary” and called for a solution allowing Afghan students to complete their education.
The dispute comes amid a broader Pakistani campaign to repatriate Afghan nationals and deteriorating relations between Islamabad and Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities. According to the International Organization for Migration, 2.65 million Afghans returned from Pakistan between Sept. 15, 2023, and July 31, 2026, including more than 1.79 million since April 2025.
Pakistan says its measures are aimed at enforcing immigration rules and addressing security concerns. Islamabad accuses the Taliban of allowing Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan militants to operate from Afghan territory, an allegation the Taliban denies.
