The ownership dispute remains pending, while the future of the historic structure remains uncertain
RAWALPINDI:
A 200-year-old historic building located at Committee Chowk on Murree Road, opposite Talian Shah’s shrine, has been abandoned by the education department after more than six decades, rekindling speculation over a major commercial redevelopment plan reportedly backed by one of Rawalpindi’s most influential political groups.
All seven offices of the District Education Authority (DEA0 and District Education Officers) were reportedly forced to move from the centrally located premises to a new educational complex at Madrassa Millia Islamia in Satellite Town, an area critics say is far less accessible to the public.
The move has effectively cleared the way for the politically influential group’s long-standing plan to develop the highly valuable land – estimated to be worth around Rs 100 billion – into commercial plazas, hotels and multi-storey buildings. Only the office of the director of colleges of education remains in the historic structure, and officials fear that it too could be removed at any time.
Considered a rare blend of European and Mughal architecture, the two-storey building was originally built almost two centuries ago by a wealthy Hindu businessman in his wife’s name as an orphanage, dharamshala and shelter.
Over the decades, the building has served several purposes. Around 1950, it briefly housed the Holy Family Hospital, while for a short period it also served as Rawalpindi’s prison.
Between 1930 and 1947, royal and British guests arriving from Bombay and Delhi were accommodated there, and it later served as a public rest house for almost two decades before the Education Department offices were moved there in 1960.
Education Department officials maintain that the property had been legally purchased from the Evacuee Trust Property Board and claim to have bank receipts proving payment. However, since 2024, the Evacuee Trust Property Board has claimed ownership of the site and has started issuing eviction notices to the Education Department offices and colleges.
