After the freedom fight, Muslim leaders thought to concentrate on their economic condition rather
than going into war with English anymore. For this purpose, they started a movement to aware Muslims
all over the subcontinent to pay attention on acquiring knowledge and modern education. This movement was led by Sir Syed Ahmed Khan. To get people educated, he emphasized to make institutes and education centres. Here is an institution, which was one of those made under this movement. It is “Sindh Madressatul Islam” The campus of Sindh Madressah is spread over eight and a half acres of land in the most prestigious part of Karachi. It is located between I. I. Chundrigar Road and Shahra-e Liaquat, just behind Habib Bank Plaza.
It was founded in September 1885 by Effendi, a Sindhi of Turkish origin who settled in Karachi. It
began to become popular with mainly Muslims of Sindh including Baloch. It is modelled on the British
public school system. The founding father of Pakistan, Muhammad Ali Jinnah studied there. Sindh
Madressatul Islam is one of the oldest modern Muslim educational institutions in South Asia. It was
established, with the objective to impart modern education to the people of Sindh. By 1895,with the
untiring efforts of Hassan Ali Effendi, the institution had fully developed into a very well-functioning
high school with three primary branches that taught in Sindhi. The Quran classes were regularly
conducted in the prayer halls. Sindh Madressatul Islam was established on the premises of Qafila Serai a former caravan station in Karachi. Sindh Madressatul Islam (SMI) University is a chartered University
duly recognized by the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan. It started as a school in 1885, became a college in 1943 and a university in February 2012.
Role of Sindh Madressa-tul-Islam in Pakistan Movement:
Sindh Madressatul Islam is not just a building but it actually holds a historical significance as it played
a very important and strong role in Pakistan Movement. Madrassa produced and provided those legendry
people who initiated this historic movement. This very building was the first institute where Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah got admission. A. K. Brohi and Allama I. I. Qazi studied here as well.In the year 1943, Mr. Muhammad Ali Jinnah visited Sindh Madressatul Islam to inaugurate a college which is now known as S.M. Science College(Sindh Muslim Science College). Sindh Madressatul Islam was established by a great educationist and visionary of his times, Khan Bahadur Hassan Ali Effendi(1830-1895).The institution was declared open on September 1, 1885 and the foundation stone of its Main Building was laid by the Viceroy of India, Lord Dufferin, on November 14,1887.The greatest distinction of Sindh Madressah has been that founder of Pakistan, Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah studied here for the longest spell of his academic life from 1887 to 1892 and revered his Alma Mater to the extent that he bequeathed one-third of his personal property to Sindh Madressah through his last will. The institution also produced some of leading luminaries of Pakistan including Sir Shahnawaz Bhutto, Sir Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah, Haji Sir Abdullah Haroon, Dr. Umer Bin Mohammad Daudpota and Allama I. I. Kazi in addition to spreading the light of education far and wide.
Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s Will
。。。 All my residuary estate including the corpus that may fall after the lapse of life interest or
otherwise to be divided into three parts – and I bequeath one part to Aligarh University- one
part to Islamia College Peshawar and one part to Sindh Madrassa of Karachi 。。。
(Quaid-e-Azam’s Will, Bombay)
After serving the people of this region for about 58 years as a school, Sindh Madressah was upgraded to
＂Sindh Madressah College” by its distinguished alumnus Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah on June 21, 1943. With passage of time the institution expanded, and one after the other, the following institutions were founded;S.M. Science College,S.M.Arts and Commerce College,S.M.Law College,Fatima Jinnah Girls College and a host of other schools. Sindh Assembly passed the Sindh Madressatul Islam University Act on December 22, 2011 giving standing ovation to the institution and its founder for services rendered. After assenting to the Bill,governor Sindh handed over the Charter of Sindh Madressatul Islam University and letter of his appointment as its first Vice Chancellor to Dr. Muhammad Ali Shaikh. The institute prided itself on imparting subsidised, modern education along with religious instruction. It was here that the Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah studied from 1887 to 1892. The Quaid returned once again to the halls of SMI in 1943, when he inaugurated college classes at his beloved Alma Mater. It was during this period that prominent European academicians including Sir Thomas Henry Vines served the institution as its principals. The year 1947 brought with it partition, and as the refugees from across the border started pouring into Pakistan, it was SMI that rapidly converted its hostels into temporary residential rooms for them.
