ISLAMABAD - ‘Are Sukkar mangoes sweeter than Multani chaunsa’ was the common question on Wednesday asked by those who have tasted the mangoes sent by Opposition Leader in National Assembly Khurshid Shah as a gift from Sukkur to the staff of Senate, National Assembly, friends and journalists in the federal capital and chief ministers, governors of four provinces.
From President Mamnoon Hussain to cabinet members and from the lower staff of Parliament to the chief ministers and governors, lawmakers of each political party have tasted the Sindhri variety of mangoes after the PPP stalwart distributed a truck of the king of fruit.
While JUI-F chief Maulana Fazal Rehman and Interior Minister Chaudhary Nisar Ali Khan got the maximum chunk of the gift, female lawmakers in both houses of parliament got the special gift of Sukkur - pickle (achaar) - as the truck loaded with Sindhri mangoes fell short due to the increasing demand from lawmakers including journalists.
Khurshid Shah is one of the few politicians who continues sending mangoes and dates during summer season to his friends in each corner of the country though politicians from Multan too sometimes bestow friends with Multani chaunsa but the quantity is often nominal.
In 2010, Yousuf Raza Gilani, then prime minister, had sent five boxes of mangoes to his then Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh as a gesture of gratitude after New Delhi had offered five million US dollars as aid for the devastating flood-affected people in Pakistan. Gilani as premier was famous for entertaining friends with the most revered Multani chaunsa, however, the generosity of Khurshid Shah has made everybody to sing songs of Sindhri mangoes as currently politicians from Multan like Shah Mehmood Qurshi and Makhdoom Javed Hashmi are over-occupied with PTI’s tsunami marches.
The chamber of Opposition Leader is frequented by all those who have received the mangoes with everybody admiring Sindhri variety including Shah Mehmood Qureshi who himself belongs to Multan - the city famous for mango orchards.
On Wednesday when the special session of National Assembly concluded, the Opposition Leader from Sukkur was surrounded by bureaucrats, journalists and lawmakers thanking him for sending the sweet mangoes.
“Send us more Sindhri mangoes. We need it more during Iftar time,” a lawmaker from FATA requested Shah.