Sending 67,000 pilgrims no more in govt’s hands: Secretary Religious Ministry
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The Ministry of Religious Affairs’ Secretary Dr. Attaur Rehman said that the issue of sending around 67,000 Pakistani Hajj pilgrims to Saudi Arabia in 2025 is no longer in the government’s hands, reported 24NewsHDTV channel.
The secretary was speaking during a meeting of the Senate’s Standing Committee on Religious Affairs on the issue of 67,000 Pakistanis—who have been deprived of performing Hajj in 2025 due to delays in agreements and payments to the Saudi government.
Senator Amir Dogar presided over the meeting which was attended by Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Sardar Muhammad Yousaf, Secretary for Religious Affairs Dr. Attaur Rehman, representatives of the Hajj Organizers Association of Pakistan (HOAP) and others.
The secretary also briefed the committee on the new policy introduced by Saudi Arabia, which states that no Hajj group organiser with a quota of less than 2,000 will be allowed. The policy also merged 904 Hajj group organisers into 45 large Hajj companies, Dr Attaur Rehman said.
The representatives of the private Hajj operators maintained that they are willing to return the pilgrims’ money without deductions if they receive it back from Saudi Arabia. They also offered the deprived pilgrims to facilitate their Hajj journey next year using the amount collected.
The members of Senate’s Standing Committee on Religious Affairs demanded that the pilgrims should receive a full refundIt was revealed in the committee that not only Pakistan got an additional quota of 10,000 for private Hajj pilgrims, but India and Bangladesh have also been given additional Hajj quota. India was given an additional quota of 10,000 out of 52,000 pilgrims.
Earlier in shocking details emerged in the Hajj 2025 scandal in Pakistan, the Hajj Organizers Association of Pakistan (HOAP) revealed that millions of Saudi Riyals in Hajj funds were transferred to the wrong account which jeopardized the pilgrimage of over 67,000 Pakistani pilgrims..
The major financial mismanagement was revealed during a meeting of the Standing Committee on Religious Affairs and Inter-Faith Harmony, chaired by Malik Muhammad Aamir Dogar, in Islamabad.