M.A. Jinnah: Operational Challenges of the Bihar Relief Fund and Personal Affairs

Sub title : Pursuing Receipts, Managing Global Donations, and Private Correspondence

Subject: Bihar Relief Fund Accountability | Donor Relations and Receipt Management | International Fundraising Networks

Date of publication: 1946

Language: English

Page: 31 p.

Source: National Archives of Pakistan

Serial no: 27993

Keyword: M.A. Jinnah -- Bihar Relief Fund Accountability -- Donation Receipts -- Habib Bank -- Arabian American Oil Company (Aramco) -- Arabian Gulf Donors | Muslim League Malacca -- Rander Muslim League -- Financial Administration -- Share Dividend Dispute | "Vatan" Newspaper -- Personal Correspondence -- Donor Relations.

Abstract: This collection captures the persistent administrative follow-through and minor crises involved in managing the vast Bihar Relief Fund, alongside glimpses into M.A. Jinnah's personal affairs. A dominant theme is the pursuit of accountability: multiple letters from donors across the Arabian Gulf (Ras Tanura, Bahrein) and local Indian Muslim Leagues (Rander, Balla) complain about not receiving official receipts for their contributions despite repeated reminders, prompting interventions with the Habib Bank. A detailed donation list from Bahrein highlights significant contributions from Arab and Persian merchants. Simultaneously, the set includes unrelated personal matters: a broker's claim regarding share dividends, a club's reminder for unpaid dues, and a letter from the founder-editor of the "Vatan" newspaper (which Jinnah founded) regarding photos from his Cairo visit and a request for an interview. This blend of documents underscores the logistical burdens of trust-based mass fundraising and the intersection of Jinnah's public, political, and private lives.

Description: This archival set reveals the critical, often frustrating, "back-office" work required to maintain the integrity of a major humanitarian fund. It moves from the macro level of global solidarity (donations from Malacca, Saudi Arabia, Bahrein) to the micro level of administrative breakdowns—missing receipts that threaten donor confidence. Letters from figures like Eshaq bin Abdulrahman in Bahrein, enclosing a massive donation of Rs. 16,651, are paired with frustrated queries from smaller leagues and individuals, painting a complete picture of a fundraising operation straining under its own scale and distance. Juxtaposed with these are candid snapshots of Jinnah's non-political life: being chased for a club bill, involved in a share ownership dispute, and engaged with the media outlet he helped establish. This collection is essential for understanding the immense effort behind maintaining transparent governance in the Muslim League's projects and the human, mundane realities that persisted alongside high-stakes political leadership. SCANNED BY: NATIONAL ARCHIVES OF PAKISTAN.

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