Dina Wadia - Jinnah Mansion Dispute

Jinnah Mansion Dispute

After Jinnah returned to Mumbai from England to take charge of the Muslim League, he built himself a palatial mansion in Mumbai, which became his residence during the politically momentous decade preceding the creation of Pakistan. The house was designed by Claude Batley, a British architect, and was built in 1936 at a total cost of Rs. 200,000/-. The 2.5 acre (10,000 m²) property, "South Court", overlooking the sea and located at 2, Bhausaheb Hirey Marg (then Mount Pleasant Road), Malabar Hill, is in Mumbai's most expensive real estate. In 1948, it was leased to the British Deputy High Commission which occupied it till 1982.

Successive Pakistan's Government have often expressed deep interest in acquiring the property for sentimental reasons. During his visit to India, President Pervez Musharraf had renewed Pakistan's claim to the house which the president had suggested to Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee should be given to Pakistan so that it could be turned into a consulate.

However, this came to naught: Dina Wadia who lived in New York, wrote to the Indian prime minister demanding that the house on the Malabar Hill, now worth $60 million, be handed over to her.