Jinnah's only child, Dina Wadia, passes away at 98

Published
97
Mr Jinnah with his sister Fatima and his daughter Dina. —​ Courtesy National Archives Islamabad
Mr Jinnah with his sister Fatima and his daughter Dina. —​ Courtesy National Archives Islamabad
Dina Wadia (extreme left), Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah’s only child, flew in from Delhi to attend her father’s funeral. —Photo: The Press Information Department, Ministry of Information, Broadcasting & National Heritage, Islamabad
Dina Wadia (extreme left), Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah’s only child, flew in from Delhi to attend her father’s funeral. —Photo: The Press Information Department, Ministry of Information, Broadcasting & National Heritage, Islamabad

Dina Wadia, the only child of Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah and Rattanbai Petit, passed away in New York on Thursday, sources in Mumbai and New York confirmed.

She was 98 years old.

She had been born on the night between August 14 and 15 in 1919.

Jinnah had raised Dina alone after his separation from Rattanbai and her subsequent demise.

Mr Jinnah and Dina share a private moment in the grounds of their home on West Heath Road in Hampstead, London. —​ Courtesy National Archives Islamabad
Mr Jinnah and Dina share a private moment in the grounds of their home on West Heath Road in Hampstead, London. —​ Courtesy National Archives Islamabad

He loved her deeply, but their relationship had become strained after Dina fell in love with and married an Indian Parsi named Neville Wadia at the age of 17.

Dina and Neville lived in Mumbai and had two children, a boy and a girl, before the couple divorced.

Dina had first visited Pakistan in 1948, when the year-old country had lost its founder, Mohammad Ali Jinnah.

The last time she visited Pakistan was in 2004, accompanied by her son, Nasli Wadia, and grandchildren, Jehangir and Ness.

After visiting the mausoleum of her father, she had written in the visitors' book: “This has been very sad and wonderful for me. May his [Jinnah's] dream for Pakistan come true.”

Opinion

Editorial

Fixing bond markets
Updated 01 Oct, 2026

Fixing bond markets

Pension funds, insurance companies, mutual funds, retail investors, and eventually, foreign investors must become bigger participants in the market.
Call centre rackets
01 Oct, 2026

Call centre rackets

A NUMBER of recent raids conducted by the authorities in different cities point to the growing threat fraudulent ...
Homeward bound
01 Oct, 2026

Homeward bound

FIVE months after Somali pirates captured an oil tanker carrying a 19-member multinational crew, Somali maritime...
Kashmir unresolved
Updated 30 Sep, 2026

Kashmir unresolved

The just solution lies in India addressing the issue through a trilateral dialogue involving the legitimate representatives of the Kashmiri people and Pakistan.
Water shortage
30 Sep, 2026

Water shortage

THAT the country is entering the Rabi season with an anticipated water shortage of nearly 25pc, the lowest carryover...
Young hearts
30 Sep, 2026

Young hearts

THE observance may have passed, but the message of World Heart Day should not fade with it. The occasion is a useful...