Private Hajj quota lapses as operators miss deadlines: Sardar Yousaf

#Private #Hajj #quota #lapses #operators #deadlines #Sardar #Yousaf

On Friday, Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Sardar Mohammad Yousuf said that a large part of Pakistan’s private Hajj quota was unused after the tour operators failed to meet the last date of payment and to comply with the Saudi government’s rules.

In January 2025, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed the annual Hajj agreement, which allocated a total of 179,210 slots for Pakistani pilgrims.

While about 90,000 was nominated for the government scheme, only 25,698 were able to move forward by private operators, and thousands of private quota were unable to perform Hajj this year.

Hajj, which is one of the five basic pillars of Islam, attracts millions of Muslims from all over the world every year, and Pakistan gets the largest pelgram quota from Saudi Arabia.

Addressing a press conference in Islamabad today, he clarified the progress of this year’s Hajj arrangements, saying that several months before taking charge of the ministry in March, the Hajj policy was approved in November.

He personally visited Saudi Arabia twice to monitor the arrangements, he said. “The total Hajj quota of Pakistan was equally divided between the government and the private schemes, in which the entire government was now used,” he said.

However, the minister said, the private sector failed to send funds on time and did not follow the instructions issued by Saudi authorities, resulting in an important part of the private Hajj quota.

He added, “Tour operators neglected to meet the deadline, and according to the Saudi directive, only at least 2,000 quota allocations were eligible.”

The Minister noted that the Hajj Organizers Association of Pakistan (HOAP) had formed 41 clusters and they needed to submit 25 % payment by February 14. Even after an extension of 48 hours, funds were reserved for only 10,000 pilgrims.

After diplomatic efforts led by Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, an additional quota of 10,000 pilgrims was allocated not only to Pakistan but also to other Muslim countries. He confirmed, “This year, 25,698 pilgrims will perform Hajj under the private scheme.

Responding to some tour operators’ claims that they are unaware of the deadline, the minister maintained that all communication was done in a timely manner. “We have provided well -known lists to qualifying companies,” he said.

Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has constituted a high -level inquiry committee to investigate the matter. The minister assured that “after submitting the inquiry report, those who are responsible will be held accountable.”

Minister Yusuf said that he personally checked the pilgrims under the government scheme during Saudi Arabia’s visits and found arrangements – transportation, food and housing – satisfactory arrangements. He added, “The government scheme follows a single level system. Any visitors face difficulties.

Responding to a question about complaints related to food and missing auxiliary staff, the minister replied that all complaints were being resolved immediately. “The companies that have failed to provide proper food will be blacklisted,” he said. He also confirmed that the problem of one -time transport has already been resolved.

For his part, Secretary for Religious Affairs Dr. Attaur Rehman rescue relief investigations continued to determine how the blacklisted Saudi company was able to get a contract this year.

He added that the pilgrims were allowed to opt out of the default food and receive SAR34 daily. “So far, no pilgrim has taken advantage of this option,” he said.

In response to media questions, Dr. Rehman admitted that some tour operators transferred the funds to wrong accounts, which delayed the residence of the booking. “The DG Hajj account received only 50 million rials, while 700 million needed, although he was initially misused, but he was returned between December and January,” he said.

Despite the shock, Dr. Rehman noted that if properly managed, the plots could be booked with the funds available.

At the end of the press conference, Minister Yusuf said unclear: “The Saudi government is not providing more Hajj quota. The private scheme, which was released this year, will unfortunately have to stay so now.”