Luxury for some, problems for others: Food minister wins car race second year in row

Residents of the district watch vehicles speeding by in the Thar Desert Rally on Sunday.

MITHI: The residents of Tharparkar watched luxurious vehicles speed through their villages during the Thar Desert Rally on Sunday. The food minister, Mir Nadir Magsi, who also inaugurated the event, won the race for the second year in a row. 

The rally brought together 27 racers from all over the country, including Minister for Excise and Taxation Mukesh Kumar Chawla and MNA Mian Mitho’s two sons, Shabeer Mitho and Asif Mitho.

The Sindh Assembly speaker, Nisar Ahmed Khuhro, who was the chief guest at the event, said that “such rallies are meant to promote Tharparkar’s culture and art.” According to him, desert rallies have been organised in Jhal Magsi, Balochistan, and there was nothing wrong with rallies being held in Sindh.

The residents of Tharparkar, however, did not feel the same as they joined members of different political parties and protested on Saturday, claiming that ministers should focus on the drought in Tharparkar rather than rallies.

Devji Bheel, a member of the Sindh Taraqi Pasand Party, said that the rally was an insult to poor people everywhere. “We have nothing to eat and rulers are organising races in our areas,” he said.

Advocate Shahnawaz Hingorjo, who is affiliated with the Awami Tehreek, said that the government should prioritise the needs of the people over entertainment.

Police and rangers had been deployed at the site and six ambulances had been parked.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 3^rd, 2012.