The Anglo Arabic Senior Secondary School, or more commonly Anglo Arabic School, is a co-educational government aided school[3]inNew Delhi, India. The school is managed by Delhi Education Society. The Vice Chancellor of Jamia Millia Islamia Najma Akhtar is the Chairperson of Delhi Education Society and Prof. Dr. Asad Malik is the manager of the school.[4] The Principal of the school is Mr. Mohd Wasim Ahmad. It was founded in 1696 by Ghazi ud-Din Khan Feroze Jung I.[5]
It was initially founded by Mir Shihab-Ud-din, also known as Ghaziuddin Khan. He was a general of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, a leading Deccan commander and the father of Qamar-ud-din Khan, Asaf Jah I, the founder of the Asaf Jahi dynasty of Hyderabad, also known as the first Nizam of Hyderabad, in 1690s, and was originally termed Madrasa Ghaziuddin Khan after him.[6] However, with a weakening Mughal Empire, the Madrasa closed in the early 1790s, but with the support of local nobility, an oriental college for literature, science and art, was established at the site in 1792.
It stood just outside the walled city of Delhi outside the Ajmeri Gate, close to the New Delhi Railway Station. It was originally surrounded by a wall and connected to the walled city fortifications and was referred to as the College Bastion.
It was reorganized as the 'Anglo Arabic College' by the British East India Company in 1828 to provide, in addition to its original objectives, an education in English language and literature. The object was "to uplift" educational status of the community living in vicinity.." Behind the move was Charles Trevelyan, the brother-in-law of Thomas Babingdon Macaulay the father of modern education in India also played key role in this process of educational uplift of the society".
Dr. Sprenger, then principal, presided over the founding of the college press, the Matba‘u ’l-‘Ulum and founded the first college periodical, the weekly Qiranu ’s-Sa‘dain, in 1845.
One of the notable teachers and principals of the Anglo Arabic College was Rao Shamshad Ali Khan, who joined the school in 1947 and served until 1975. He was a prominent figure in the Muslim League, a political party that advocated for the creation of Pakistan, and was arrested by the police during the Emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi in 1975.[6]
Anglo Arabic School at the Ajmeri Gate is in the 330th year of its foundation. Two former administrators of this educational institution have chronicled the history and legacy of one of the oldest running Muslim schools in India. The book is titled " The School at Ajmeri Gate: Delhi Educational Legacy is published by Oxford University Press.[8] The book contains the detailed history of the school.[6]
