Jinnah Courts, formerly known as Leslie Wilson Muslim Hostel, is a heritage building and former hostel located at Dr Ziauddin Ahmed Road, in the

Civil Lines Civil Lines (archaically White Town) are the residential neighbourhoods developed during the British Raj for its senior civilian officers like Divisional commissioner and District magistrate. These townships were built all over the Indian subconti ...

neighbourhood of

Saddar Saddar ( ur, ), also known as Saddar Bazaar, is a neighbourhood in Karachi, Pakistan. The locality was developed as the primary commercial district during the period of British-era rule in Karachi. As a result, Saddar contains the large concentr ...

, in South Karachi. It currently serves as the

headquarters Headquarters (commonly referred to as HQ) denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the to ...

paramilitary force A paramilitary is an organization whose structure, tactics, training, subculture, and (often) function are similar to those of a professional military, but is not part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. Paramilitary units carr ...

Sindh Rangers The Sindh Rangers (formally Pakistan Rangers Sindh) ( ur, ) is a paramilitary federal law enforcement corps in Pakistan. It is one of nine Civil Armed Forces and is one of two Ranger corps' with the other one being the Punjab Rangers, which ...

History

Founded as the Leslie Wilson Muslim Hostel, named after Leslie Wilson, it was built using

donation A donation is a gift for charity, humanitarian aid, or to benefit a cause. A donation may take various forms, including money, alms, services, or goods such as clothing, toys, food, or vehicles. A donation may satisfy medical needs such as blo ...

s from

citizen Citizenship is a "relationship between an individual and a state to which the individual owes allegiance and in turn is entitled to its protection". Each state determines the conditions under which it will recognize persons as its citizens, and ...

s and provincial local bodies to accommodate students from across Sindh. The foundation stone was laid in June 1932, and the building was inaugurated in June 1933. In 1986, management of the building was handed over to the culture department, and the Rangers temporarily relocated their headquarters there in April 1999. Previously, the Rangers headquarters was located in the Sheikh Zayed Islamic Centre (SZIC) on University Road. However, the United Arab Emirates government, which funded the SZIC's construction, objected to its use by

law enforcement Law enforcement is the activity of some members of government who act in an organized manner to enforce the law by discovering, deterring, rehabilitating, or punishing people who violate the rules and norms governing that society. The term en ...

and insisted that it be reserved for educational purposes. The status of the building is protected by the Sindh Cultural Heritage (Preservation) Act of 1994. The Jinnah Courts is used since 1999 as the headquarters of the

, paramilitary federal law enforcement organization.

References

{{Cultural heritage sites in Sindh , state=autocollapse Pakistan Rangers Hostels in Pakistan Buildings and structures in Karachi Heritage sites in Karachi British colonial architecture 1933 establishments in British India Tourist attractions in Karachi

History

See also

References