Mitha Ram Hostel, also spelled as Mitharam Hostel, is a historical building and former

hostel A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory, with shared use of a lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex and have private or shared b ...

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...

. It now serves as a sub-jail under the administration of

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 ...

since April 2015.

History

Mitha Ram Hostel shares a historical connection with

D. J. Sindh Government Science College Dayaram Jethamal Sindh Government Science College, ( sd, ) commonly known as DJ Science College, is a public community college that is affiliated with the University of Karachi — it is located near Burns Road in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. Pre ...

, which was established through the efforts of Indian lawyer,

Dayaram Gidumal Dayaram Gidumal Shahani (30 June 1857 – 7 December 1927) or Rishi Dayaram, was an Indian social reformer, judge, poet, and scholar. He was known as the godfather of Sindhi Hindus. Life Born in Hyderabad, Sindh, Dayaram received his early educat ...

, in the late 1880s. Gidumal campaigned for the college's construction, as many Karachi students could not afford to travel to

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

for education. Funded by both the Bombay and Karachi governments and private contributions, the college was completed in 1887 and named after Diaram Jethmal, whose family made a significant donation. The subsequent influx of students to Karachi necessitated the construction of a hostel. Gidumal's brother, Mitha Ram, contributed financially to the project, leading to the hostel's completion in 1901. Notably, the Mitha Ram Hostel played a role in the 1940s

independence movement Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...

, hosting meetings for activists such as

Sobho Gianchandani Sobho Gianchandani (3 May 1920 – 8 December 2014) was a Pakistani Sindhi social scientist, and revolutionary writer. Gianchandani was born in Bindi (some sources call it Bandi), a small village near the archaeological site of Mohenjo-daro. ...

and Hashu Kevalramani. In the 1990s, Syed Abdullah Shah, a former chief minister, intended to transform the building into a

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these ...

, but this plan never materialized. In 1992, the hostel was occupied by the

Pakistan Rangers The Pakistan Rangers ( ur, ) are a paramilitary federal law enforcement organization in Pakistan, operating under the authority of the Interior Secretary of Pakistan. Their primary purpose is to secure and defend sites of significance in the ...

and later received the approval by the

Chief Minister of Sindh Chief Minister of Sindh (, ur, —), is the elected head of government of Sindh. Syed Murad Ali Shah is a PPP politician and the current Chief Minister of Sindh. The Chief Minister is the head of the provincial government alongside the Chief S ...

, legitimizing a practice that had occurred without formal agreement for decades. Initially, the Rangers were stationed at the hostel to maintain order and address escalating incidents of

targeted killings Targeted killing is a form of murder or assassination carried out by governments outside a judicial procedure or a battlefield. Since the late 20th century, the legal status of targeted killing has become a subject of contention within and be ...

and

kidnapping In criminal law, kidnapping is the unlawful confinement of a person against their will, often including transportation/asportation. The asportation and abduction element is typically but not necessarily conducted by means of force or fear: the p ...

s in Karachi.

References

{{Cultural heritage sites in Sindh , state=autocollapse British colonial architecture Buildings and structures in Karachi 1901 establishments in British India Heritage sites in Karachi Hostels in Pakistan Pakistan Rangers Prisons in Pakistan Tourist attractions in Karachi

History

See also

References