BJP lawmaker demands to demolish Jinnah House in Mumbai
MLA Lodha said that residence of Pakistans founder should be demolished to build a cultural center
(Web Desk) – According to Indian media, a lawmaker belonging to BJP demanded that the residence of Pakistan’s founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah should be demolished. He recommended building a cultural centre in place of the iconic Jinnah House.
Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Mangal Prabhat Lodha expressed his rage in the Indian legislative assembly. While addressing the issue of budget of Public Works Department, he called Jinnah House ‘the place from where the conspiracy of partition started’.
“Jinnah Residence is a symbol of partition. The house should be demolished,” Lodha said. “The structure should be demolished and a heritage centre highlighting Maharashtra s culture should be built instead. The cultural centre would exhibit the glorious history of India.”
He believes that excess of money was being spent on maintenance of the historic building. The MLA recommended building a heritage center which will depict Maharashtra s culture. Lodha said that replacing Quaid’s home in Mumbai with a cultural center would retain pride and depict the prestigious history of India.
Jinnah House in Malabar Hill, Bombay. Source: mid-day.com
The BJP lawmaker claimed that Jinnah House was the property of Indian government according to the Enemy Property Act. “Demolishing the Jinnah house is the ultimate option. Jinnah’s relatives cannot claim right to ownership now”, he added.
Quaid-e-Azam’s residence in Mumbai is situated in Malabar Hill area. Jinnah mainly lived in his Bombay mansion before the independence and moving to Karachi, Pakistan. Jinnah House was built in 1936 and it was vacated by Quaid in 1947 partition.
Last year, Enemy Property Bill (2016) was passed in the Indian parliament. According to the recent amendment in the act, people who left India after migrating to China or Pakistan will have no claim over their properties.
