Another claimant to Jinnah House -Anshika Mishra

MUMBAI: The Indian government is faced with yet another challenge to its claim over the sprawling Malabar Hill bungalow, Jinnah House, built by Pakistan’s founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah.

Napean Sea Road resident, Mohamed Rajabally Ebrahim,72, who is Jinnah’s grand-nephew, has filed a writ petition in the Bombay High Court stating the government has “no right to squat” over Jinnah House after the repeal of the Displaced Persons (DP) Act in 2005.

According to Ebrahim’s lawyer, Yusuf Muchhala, the bungalow was acquired by the government in June 1955 under the DP Act 1954 for the public purpose of rehabilitating and compensating persons displaced during Partition. However, since then, Jinnah House has not been allotted to any displaced persons and has not been used for the purpose of rehabilitation of displaced persons.