Over the past 111 years, Gymkhana has paid a meagre Rs 2.68 lakh in total to the Punjab government as rent. The Punjab Assembly has taken offence to this.
For the first time in more than a century, the management of the Lahore Gymkhana Club might actually have to pay rent for the 117 acres that the colonial era golf club is housed on. It is not exactly a secret that Gymkhana basically pays nothing even though it operates on land owned by the Punjab government and given to them through a lease. The understanding has always been that since Gymkhana is a grand old institution, the free use of public land is essentially a privilege that comes with the legacy.
But this opinion seems to have waned over time, especially since over the years the club has become increasingly more exclusive. New memberships are rarely given out and even old political families have had a hard time getting second-sons, grandsons and son-in-laws trouble getting in. Perhaps that is why in recent times the club has seen some of its influence falter.
Nothing is more evident of that than a new committee of the Punjab Assembly that has been constituted to rethink the relationship between the provincial government and the club. The only question is, will they be able to do anything about it? Freebies Here’s a number for you to put things into perspective. In the 111 years since 1913, the Punjab Government has billed Lahore Gymkhana Club for a total amount of Rs 2 lakh, 60 thousand, and 800 rupees.
And the club has not paid all of this either according to the government. So what gives? The club was founded in 1878 in the Lawrence Gardens opposite the sprawling estate of the Governor House, the imperial symbol of power and authority of the Raj. The first organisational golf tournament played there was the Champion Medal (Roe Medal) which was held in January 1895.
The building of the Institute comprised mainly the Lawrence and Montgomery Halls. These were used for social and intellectual recreation for the residents of Lahore. The Lawrence Hall, the building facing the Mall, was built in 1861-62 in memory of Sir John Laird Lawrence, the first Chief Commissioner (1853-57) and Viceroy of India (1863-69), while the Montgomery Hall facing the central avenue of the Bagh-e-Jinnah was built in 1866 to commemorate Robert Montgomery, second Lt Governor of the Punjab (1859-65).
The club was built soon after the annexation of Punjab. Ranjit Singh died in 1839, the Sikh empire fell apart within 10 years of this and the British were ruling Punjab by 1850. In these initial days, creating spaces like Gymkhana was an important part of the colonising process.
But by the early 1900s, the colonial government managed by District Commissioners wanted a formal relationship with the government and the private Gymkhana Club. In 1913, an agreement was signed between Lahore’s DC and the Club management, agreeing that the club land would be leased out to them by the government for the next 8 years at a cost of Rs 1600 per year. This agreement was renewed in 1921 for 40 years to 1960.
This meant that at the time when Pakistan was created, the rich and wealthy of the city took control of the club and continued to pay the meagre rent. In 1960 when the lease was up, it was a pretty simple process to have it leased out for another 40 years until the year 2000. For some reason, in the year 2000 the government decided that instead of maintaining the rent at the historic Rs 1600 per year, they would increase it to Rs 500 per year, meaning Gymkhana now had to pay them a monthly rent of Rs 417.
But there was a difference here. You see the last agreement had been running since 1960, but a big change had occurred in 1972. In this year, the government of Punjab took over the original building of the club and turned it into the Quaid e Azam Public Library.
The elite club was moved to its present location at The Upper Mall, which was previously the Golf Club of Lahore Gymkhana and spread over an area of 117 acres of land leased from the Punjab government. The foundation stone of the present building was laid on 5 March 1968 by the then Chairman of Lahore Gymkhana Nawab Muzaffar Ali Qizilbash. The building was completed and occupied on 16 January 1972, the cost of which was borne by the members.
The club’s historic cricket ground, arguably the most beautiful in the country and the second-oldest in the subcontinent, is still housed inside Lawrence Gardens. So when the lease agreement was up for negotiation again in 2000, it was this new 117 acre spread on The Upper Mall that was being given out at Rs 417 a month. The problem This is where things stand.
The club has stood for decades now at its current location on The Mall. The cost of developing it has been paid by its members, but the government owns the land it is on. The meagre amount they charge in rent is a bit shocking to read, but it is not unprecedented.
The government often allows the use of its land at token rates for uses that are in the public good. It is actually a pretty good idea. Say someone wants to open a sports ground for underprivileged kids or wants to build a charitable hospital or university.
These are all endeavours that would fall within the good of the public. The government obviously wants the welfare of its citizens, if not for moral reasons then simply to keep the electorate happy. When you have someone willing to invest in such a project, one thing the government can easily do is give that individual or organisation the land for it.
It is a rare win-win situation. Buying land would otherwise have been very expensive for the person wanting to pursue the project, and the government has it just laying around not being used. It is how grants of land have also been made for institutes like Shaukat Khanum Memorial Hospital and the Sindh Institute for Urology and Transplantation.
The only issue here is that Lahore Gymkhana does not make any sense as an institution that promotes public good. No matter what anyone tells you about history, heritage, or anything else the club is simply a relic of the past where people with too much time, money, and privilege on their hands go for afternoon tea so they can feel good looking at their high walls and tell themselves they are members of an exclusive club. It is the cost of this exclusivity that the people of Punjab pay.
And the club in Lahore is not the only such facility. There is Chenab Club in Faisalabad, Punjab Club, and institutions like the Sindh Club in Karachi. The issue is simple.
Is there any reason for the government to be subsidising the rent for an institution that represents nothing but the worst of elitism in the country? What might happen Well, some members of the Punjab Assembly felt that this was not appropriate in any way and moved for a debate in the assembly on this issue. The members claimed that according to market analysis they had commissioned, the rent of the entire 117 acre area of the Gymkhana could commercially fetch an annual rent of Rs 360 crores, or around Rs 30 crores a month. Of course, this estimate is a liberal one and takes into account the possible commercialisation of the entire area.
Ideally, the land should be used in public interest rather than having it handed over to real estate developers. But this does put a cost on the matter. It means if the club does want to use the land in such a guarded and private way, they should be willing to pay at least a fraction of this.
This debate took place in May this year. After the Speaker asked for some facts to be verified, the latest development has come in the form of a special committee. In a detailed explanation, Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan has listed the matters on which they wil deliberate.
The committee will determine the legality, appropriateness, and public interest of the current lease agreement between Lahore Gymkhana Club and the Punjab Government. It also has the power to review the 1960 and 1996 lease agreements. It will also take up the issue of public use of this land, and investigate the government’s right, under the Lease Agreements, to resume the land for public purposes, such as converting it into a park, urban forest, or other equitable land uses.
What is perhaps most concerning for the club is that as part of this review, the committee will also determine any financial losses due to undervalued rent and recommend recovery measures from responsible parties. The most important sticking point here will be the committee’s findings on the club’s right to have exclusive use of this public land. Of course, there is a long road to go here and the club will continue on being stuck in time as it is now.
If the committee finds the teeth to give a scathing report, it will be a while before a law is passed and the government can take action. Even when that happens, you best believe that the club has more than enough resources to drag this matter to every single court they can find. The point, however, is that this is the first time the Lahore Gymkhana Club is not getting the red carpet treatment from the provincial government.
If only a few things go right, they could be facing some trouble. But until we know more, it is hard to imagine this eyesore of a relic going anywhere. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.
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