Gambling under the guise of a tonga race

Last Wednesday, commuters were caught in huge traffic jams to and from Ghaziabad on National Highway 24. Why? Because the local police had stopped all traffic since 7.30 am on account of a tonga (horse-drawn carriage) race in which crores of rupees changed hands in gambling or satta. The Uttar Pradesh police may have known how much money was involved because the entire highway was jammed even as tongas raced on the blacktop road. Most of the contestants were carrying countrymade weapons and there was firing in the air when the race was over. Reports from Lucknow say the matter is being probed.