Pakistan’s founding father Mohammad Ali Jinnah was notably meticulous when it came to financial matters and he strategically invested his funds in shares across various companies in the country. Prior to Independence, it’s believed that he swiftly transferred a substantial portion of his wealth to Pakistan ensuring that not a single rupee of his fortune remained in India.He took the proactive step of closing his bank account in Mumbai and withdrew all his funds, exhibiting a profound vigilance regarding investments and property management.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
SCROLL TO CONTINUE READING
In the days leading up to Independence, he even purchased shares in Air India.
Amid the negotiations between Congress and the Muslim League regarding the partition agreement in March 1947, Jinnah remained vigilant about investment opportunities. In March, he penned letters to select brokers, acquiring 500 shares of Air India Limited. However, discerning his exact intentions behind such investments proves challenging. Detailed accounts of Jinnah’s financial trends are extensively delineated in the Quaid-I-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah Papers Pakistan: Struggling for Survival 1 January-30 September 1948, a project by the Government of Pakistan.
Jinnah also contemplated selling his Mumbai residence, Jinnah House. Despite its market value of Rs 5 lakh, he encountered difficulty in finding a buyer, eventually altering his plans. Perhaps he harbored the desire to retain a foothold in India and occasionally visit. However, he notably sold his grand bungalow in Delhi’s Lutyens Zone to the distinguished industrialist Ramkrishna Dalmia for Rs 05 lakh.
Known for his legal acumen, Jinnah’s investment pursuits are revealed in papers authored by JH Jaidi. Undoubtedly, Jinnah commanded substantial legal fees. During that era, the British held only two lawyers in India in high regard: Jinnah himself and Tej Sapru, both of whom had pursued barrister studies in London.
Conversations with those acquainted with Jinnah shed light on his keen interest in discussing property and investment matters. He maintained close ties with numerous business associates, often engaging in such discussions during meetings. Ramkrishna Birla, a leading industrialist of the time, enjoyed his camaraderie. Acting upon Birla’s counsel, Jinnah made numerous investments and sold the splendid white bungalow he had purchased in Delhi’s Aurangzeb Road a few years before independence.
Approximately a year and a half prior to independence, Jinnah embarked on a mission to reconcile his Indian properties. Eagerly seeking a comprehensive overview of his accounts, he sprang into action as the Indian banking sector experienced a sudden surge in activity. Some banks, headquartered in Lahore, contemplated relocating to Delhi, while Mumbai’s Habib Bank opted to merge its branch there and move it to Lahore.
Jinnah sought information from the Delhi branch of Habib Bank and the Lahore and Mumbai branches of the National Bank of India regarding the balance in his accounts. On June 30, both banks apprised him of the cumulative amount, totaling Rs 7,97,107. Jinnah promptly withdrew the rupees he had deposited in Indian banks, retaining some for personal use and transferring the remainder to the Habib Bank in Pakistan.
However, the fate of the shares in Air India that Jinnah had acquired remains unclear. Speculation suggests that he may not have had the opportunity to sell these shares, as his commitments intensified upon relocating to Pakistan. Within a year, he passed away, and consequently, all his assets were bequeathed to his sister, Fatima.
Following Jinnah’s demise, his estate was passed on to Fatima, yet disputes over it arose in Pakistan subsequently. A petition was filed in the Sindh High Court, requesting the return of his wealth to his heirs. Allegations surfaced that before her death, Fatima had invested Rs 28 lakh, yet no records of her investments were found in any bank’s logbooks.
