Horse cart racing an annual affair, say Delhi police a day after arresting 10

Residents of the Walled City area said the race, colloquially known as Eid ki tarr (celebrations that take place on the second day of Eid), was very popular around 30 years ago

A day after Delhi Police arrested ten people for taking part in an illegal horse cart race along central Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru Marg, police officials and people familiar with the practice on Monday said the race is an annual event organised on the second day of the three-day Eid-ul-Fitr celebrations.

A screengrab of an alleged video of the race on Sunday. On Sunday, at around 4.30 pm, the Kamla Market police station was informed about an illegal horse cart race, with some people on two-wheelers driving along the participants, clearing traffic out of the way. (HT Photo)

Residents of the Walled City area said the race, colloquially known as Eid ki tarr (celebrations that take place on the second day of Eid), was very popular around 30 years ago but is no longer prevalent, although a few individuals continue to partake in it.

On Sunday, at around 4.30 pm, the Kamla Market police station was informed about an illegal horse cart race, with some people on two-wheelers driving along the participants, clearing traffic out of the way. The police stopped the race with the help of barricades.

Four horses and customised carts — all owned by well-off individuals from the Walled City, according to police officials — were seized and 10 people, including six on the horse carts, were arrested for negligent conduct with respect to animals, creating public nuisance and causing disobedience to order.

An investigation into the case and the questioning of the accused revealed the race was part of high-stakes gambling, with scores of people betting on the outcome.

No particular organisation was involved in organising the race, police have gathered from initial questioning, deeming it to be put together by peer groups involved in such activities in the past and punters who would bet on the race were informed about the event through word-of-mouth.

No permission from the police or any concerned agencies was taken, said an officer who asked not to be named.

A second police officer aware of the matter said the horses and carts belonged to well-off people who raised animals as a hobby. The officer, quoting information obtained from the accused, said the horse carts are called “shahi baggi”, and are either used for individual rides by their owners, or for races organised in Delhi and some neighbouring states such as Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.

One of the accused who participated in the race said he owned seven horses. He said the animals used to pull tongas (carts for passengers), but after they were banned by the MCD in 2010, he had been raising the horses “out of love”.

“Earlier, I used to have a licence, but now, with the proliferation of e-rickshaws and the phasing out of tongas, I continue to raise horses as a hobby. My horse Peela has been apprehended by the authorities. I purchased it five years ago for ₹40,000. We don’t have space at home, but keep the horses at Aruna Asaf Ali, where the government had allocated land for tongas,” said Khan.

An MCD official said that the civic body banned the tonga in 2010, in the run up to the Commonwealth Games. “While the licences for tongas were discontinued, the licences for use of horse-drawn carriages are still issued for baarats and other ceremonies. Using animals for performances also requires a licence from the Animal Welfare Board of India,” the official said.

While most of Delhi reacted with surprise after news of the horse cart race — and the subsequent arrests — was reported, for residents of the Walled City area, this annual event is tradition, albeit one steadily declining in popularity.

Muhammad Naeem, an old Delhi resident, said the race is no longer followed by the masses, though some people associated with a prominent hotel — he declined to name which one —continue to indulge in it.

Mohd Yameen, a resident of Turkman Gate, said Yameen said in the old days, the race started at Okhla and ended in the Jama Masjid area. “Okhla used to be sparsely populated in the earlier days. On the second day of Eid, enthusiasts used to participate in the race in groups. Now, the practice has died down since the population of Okhla has increased. The government has also imposed restrictions on horse racing,” he said.

Speaking about the race on Sunday, the first police officer quoted above said, “The race, that started from near Rajghat, was supposed to culminate at the peak of the Paharganj flyover. The horse cart that reached the point first would have been declared the winner.”

The second officer said, “The horses are raised like pets and are not used for any commercial activities. The owners of the horses take proper care of them and feed them dry fruits, grams and jaggery. The horses are trained for these races.”

However, such a race in the heart of Delhi, with participants weaving in and out of traffic on a busy road, was fraught with danger, the officers were keen to point out.

DCP Sain said, “Roads are for general traffic and public use. No individual or group can be allowed to use the public spaces for organising any events or races without prior permission. Nuisance in public places cannot be tolerated. Those involved in such nuisance are dealt with strictly and as per law.”