HYDERABAD / NAWAB­SHAH: At least 16 devotees lost their lives and over 45 others were injured in two road accidents in Sindh on Saturday, as pilgrims made their way to Sehwan Sharif for the Urs of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar.

In the first incident, a passenger bus carrying devotees from Bure­wala, Punjab, collided with a rickshaw near Ranipur, Khairpur district, killing 11 people and injuring 35 others.

According to Khairpur Deputy Com­missioner Ahmed Fawad Shah, the passenger bus collided with a rickshaw while crossing the National Highway, causing the bus to overturn.

“The driver might have been trying to avoid the rickshaw,” he said.

The dead and injured were taken to Rural Health Centre (RHC) Hingorja, RHC Ranipur and Gam­bat Institute of Medical Sciences (GIMS) Khairpur for treatment.

Victims were on way to Sehwan Sharif for Urs of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar

Khairpur SSP Tauheed Memon confirmed that all victims were from Burewala. He said legal formalities were being completed before the bodies and injured were transported back to Burewala and Vehari.

The deceased were identified as Nazeer, 60; Atta Muhammad, 50; Rani Khatoon, 45; Muhammad Shahid, 38; Faisal, 35; Babar Ali, 28; Hameed Ali, 45; Asghar Kaka, 25; Muhammad Sha­hzad, 45; and Muhammad Yaseen, 50.

In the second accident, at least five devotees lost their lives and 10 others were injured when a van collided with a trailer near Qazi Ahmed town of Sha­heed Benazirabad district on Saturday.

The van, carrying pilgrims from Nawabshah to Sehwan Sharif, initially hit a donkey cart before crashing into a trailer on Amri Road, according to Qazi Ahmed SHO Waseem Mirza.

The deceased were identified as Mohammed Zafar, Babar Ali, Moh­ammed Azeem, Dildar and Latif.

The two accidents occurred just days ahead of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar’s annual Urs, set to begin on Feb 19 (18th of Sha_baan). The Sindh government has announced a public holiday on Feb 19, as thousands of devotees from across the country flock to the shrine to pay their respects to the Sufi saint.

Fatal road accidents on highways occur frequently in Pakistan, with the main reasons including speeding, hazardous overtaking and disregard for traffic rules.

Just on Friday, three renow­ned religious performers, inclu­ding social media sensation Khawaja Ali Kazim, died in a road accident near Manjhand while travelling to Karachi, according to Samaa TV. Kazim, along with Syed Jan Ali Rizvi and Zain Turabi, was returning from Khair­pur, where they had performed at the Imam-i-Zamana celebrations, when their vehicle collided.

Waseem Shamsi in Sukkur also contributed to this report

Published in Dawn, February 16th, 2025