KARACHI, Oct 26: The Government officials continued to play hide and seek with horseracing in the city, when Sunday’s activities at the Karachi racecourse was cancelled following expiry of the three-month licence.

Horseracing, which resumed on July 31 after a three-and-a-half month lull, had to be cancelled after the officials of the KRC failed to get things moving after having applied for renewal of the license a fortnight ago.

“The licence should have been submitted for renewal much in advance when the KRC officials knew it was going to expire on Oct 23.

“It is slackness and lack of professionalizm on the part of those who are running the affairs,” sources told Dawn Friday.

So much so, horseracing for the following Sunday was also in a cloud. In the past it had taken weeks to settle the financial package between the KRC and government officials which was indeed the backbone of the dispute.

Kamal Farooq, a KRC Steward, said the Sindh government had allowed the KRC to resume activities twice in a week (Sunday and Wednesday) after the settlement of payment of taxes to the Home Department.

Nevertheless, horceracing had to be curtailed to once a week because of shortage of horses, not to mention the lack of funds. However, there were no delays in paying the Home Department the taxes despite reduced races.

With the future at the KRC uncertain once again, the owners, breeders, trainers, riders, grooms and many hundreds more who earn their livelihood from this sport, are in a fix as there will also be no activity owing to the holy month of Ramazan which is expected to commence from Nov 15.

The other dilemma facing the people active in the sport is that if racing comes to a closure, many horses, like before, will be abandoned by their owners.

It may be recalled that during the crisis when the race course was lying idle, about 170 race horses were shifted to Lahore and the owners who could not afford the trip up north, just abandoned their thoroughbred charges.

Starving and in ill health, 70 thoroughbred horses died in their filth abandoned even by their grooms. Much more would have met their doom, but timely intervention of a Lahore and London-based organisation, Brooke Hospital for Animals, were saved.

Lt Col Syed Anwarul Haq and the Residence Vet Officer Mohammad Kashif, who worked under trying conditions with no electricity and water endlessly to save the animals.

Tail piece: Horseracing needs to be resumed at the earliest as classic races like the Pakistan Oaks, Pakistan St Leger, Colts & Fillies Trials, 2000 Guineas of Pakistan, Nursery Cup, the Quaid-i-Azam Gold Cup, the blue ribboned on the Pakistan turf calender and the Christmas Cup are to be contested immediately after Eid-ul-Fitr.

Sad indeed, as horseracing over here was improving in leaps and bounds.