ISLAMABAD – Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony, Senator Talha Mahmood has confirmed that there will be no free Hajj this year for ministers or parliamentarians.
Answering the queries raised by various members during the National Assembly session on Tuesday, the minister refused to offer VIP Hajj facilities to the members of parliament (MPs) and instead said they would also stay in tents or similar hotels with ordinary pilgrims.
“The facilities that will be provided to the common Hujjaj will also be provided to the MPs,” he vowed.
Mahmood went on to say that he had instructed all the employees of the ministry overseeing the Hajj operation that he would recommend chopping off the hands of whoever caught stealing in Saudi Arabia.
Addressing the controversy related to Zam Zam water, the minister said Zamzam is still free but the government of Saudi Arabia is charging money for its packaging.
Explaining the expenses incurred on the Hajj operation, the minister highlighted that in 2019 buildings were rented for 2,600 Saudi Riyals but now 1,900 to 2,300 riyals were being paid.
The minister confirmed that out of the total quota of 179,210, the total number of applications received were 72,800 under the government Hajj scheme and the government had to surrender a quota of 8,000 or otherwise the government will have to pay for accommodation, food, transport and other expenses of these pilgrims.
The government of Pakistan is finalizing the arrangements for Hajj. For Pakistani pilgrims, the deadline for submission of application for this year’s Hajj ended on April 9 for Sponsorship Scheme and April 2nd for regular Hajj Scheme. The government has announced that no balloting would take place for intending Hajj pilgrims this year as the number of applicants falls short of the quota made available to Pakistan.
It is to be highlighted that 50 percent quota had been reserved for Sponsorship Scheme which is a special facility given to Hajj pilgrims seeking foreign exchange from abroad in the specific dollar account of the religious affairs ministry.
For this year, the government had set Hajj expenses at Rs1.175 million per pilgrim, 68% more than the last year’s expenses which apparently became a reason for many of the Muslims to avoid performing the ritual amid sky rocketing inflation.
It is note worthy that this is the first time Saudi Arabia would be welcoming pilgrims in large numbers i.e around 2.3m after the pandemic restrictions have been lifted. Around one million people joined the 2022 Hajj season and only those in age bracket 18 to 65 who were fully vaccinated or immunised against the virus and did not suffer from chronic diseases were allowed to visit the kingdom.
