Jamshed Dasti, a controversial Pakistani politician with the ruling Pakistan People's Party, who marks himself out as an 'anti-feudal', in his constitutency in MuzaffargarhPhotograph: Declan Walsh/GuardianA desperate flood affectee leans against the jeep of Jamshed DastiPhotograph: Declan Walsh/GuardianA blind woman made homeless by the floods with Dasti. Dasti's constituency is Muzaffargarh, in southern Punjab, an agriculturally rich areaPhotograph: Declan Walsh/Guardian
Dasti, inside the car, is known as 'Rescue 115' among supporters, after Pakistan's emergency response servicePhotograph: Declan Walsh/GuardianDasti, born poor in the Punjab, has built a populist following by criticising the power of the feudal landlords that have dominated the rich agricultural area for generationsPhotograph: Declan Walsh/GuardianA man walks across the Taunsa Barrage in southern Punjab, near Muzaffargarh. Claims were made that some land owners used their political influence to ensure that water was released from the barrage in a manner that saved their crops but flooded thousands of homes of poorer farmersPhotograph: Declan Walsh/GuardianChildren from Chah Muslim Khan, a flood-ravaged village in southern Punjab. Their land is covered by a thick layer of fine sand left behind by the retreating waters. Familes said they had received no humanitarian aid except for tents such as this one, which were donated by an Islamic relief groupPhotograph: Declan Walsh/GuardianChildren with eye infections in Chah Muslim Khan, a flood-ravaged village in southern PunjabPhotograph: Declan Walsh/GuardianChildren watch aid trucks rumble byPhotograph: Declan Walsh/Guardian
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