KARACHI: The owners of historical building of Islamia College complex that was nationalized under Martial Law Regulation (MLR)-118 in 1972, had approached the court to get the property back, but College Education Department has not perused it properly and it is likely to lose the complex, where four colleges and two schools are running currently, Daily Times learnt. The complex is situated on property No. 490 in Jamshed Quarters, Karachi and before the nationalization all those colleges and schools, existed in the complex, were running under the administration of a society, the Islamic Education Trust (IET). In 1948, a group of persons formed society Islamic Education Society under the Registration Act 1860. The documents available with Daily Times reveal that the society set up Islamia College in 1948, in a small building at Cytion Road, near Mazar-e-Quaid Karachi. With of the passage of time, the building proved insufficient for the large number of students. Afterwards, the society decided to get a suitable plot of land and construct immense building for the College. The Society appealed the general public in 1958 for donation, to construct a building for Dar-ul-Uloom and College. An account titled Islamic Education Society Building Fund was opened in the Bank of Bahawalpur. The society collected 15 Lac Rupees from the public in general while Government of Pakistan also contributed Rs 1 million, at that time. The Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) allotted a plot to the IET on 99 years lease, priced 2 Rupees each square yards per annum. The plot measuring 22349 square yards, bear survey No. JM 5 is located in Jamshed town. In the first phase, a mosque and single story building for the Islamia College had been built and the college was shifted to the newly constructed building, now known as Islamia College complex. Later on, IET constructed three-storied building and its chairman A.M Qureshi, made a rent agreement with Governing Body of Islamia College through the Principal, G.M Khan worth Rs 58,000 per month on 5th August 1961. However, the then Chief Martial Law Administrator, Zufikar Ali Bhutto issued a Martial Law Regulation (MLR) 118 on 29th March 1972 through which all the private educational institutions were taken over by the Federal Government or Provincial Governments. After the implementation of MLR, government nationalized 176 colleges with all assets on 1 September 1972, in which 78 colleges were situated in Punjab and 98 were in Sindh included Islamia Arts and Commerce College, Islamia Science College, Islamia Law College, Quraishi High School, Islamia women College and Mary Cloco School. The IET’s Secretary General, Afroz Shah filed a Constitution Petition No. D-96/2001 in Sindh High Court (SHC), on 10 January 2001 and the Education and Literacy Department, Sindh, agreed to pay interim payment of Rupees one million to the petitioner. The Sindh government has also filed a law suit 203/2002 before Sindh High Court prayed for removal of trustees but the suit was dismissed. It is worth while mentioning here that IET had filed a rent case no. 413/2004 against the City District Government, Karachi in the Rent Court which was allowed on 26 April 2008. The IET also filed suit No 373/2007 for recovery of rent against Sindh government but government appealed in the SHC against IET for stay order. After a long legal fight, the case was moved into the Supreme Court of Pakistan and the decision is pending. However, Secretary of the College Education Department, Parvez Ahmed Seehar called a meeting regarding Islamia College complex on 9th April 2017. This meeting was attended by Additional Secretary, Aziz Fatima, Director Colleges, Dr Nasir Ansar, former Regional Director Colleges, Zamir Ahmed Khuso and Litigation Officer, Zahid Ahmed. Amazingly, all those officers were unable to produce proper record to present it to the CED’s secretary. Even for the past four and half years, any of the CED’s officers are not appearing at court hearings. It is pertinent to mention here that the de-nationalisation of the educational institutes started during Zia-ul-Haq regime which encouraged private investors in the education sector. Even government expanded its privatization policy and Non Government Organizations (NGOs) adopted thousands of state-run schools due miss management and lack of funds.