ABSTRACT
In an undated letter, probably from December 1945, Fayazuddin Tariq, a student at the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) wrote a letter to Mohammad Ali Jinnah seeking Muslim League support for the foundation of a Medical College at the University. He noted his return address as Maris Road, Aligarh, Pakistan.1 The return address suggests a conundrum, for in 1945, there was no territory yet defined as Pakistan, and its later definition did not include the city of Aligarh, 90 miles southeast of New Delhi.2 The return address should ensure the successful delivery of a reply, so why did Fayazuddin Tariq so confidently refer to this imaginary geography?
