Licences of 10 Hajj agencies cancelled over irregularities
Riyadh approves 5-point Dhaka proposals
ANISUR RAHMAN KHAN, Dhaka
The government has cancelled the licences of 10 Hajj agencies and frozen their deposit money for their alleged irregularities pointed out by pilgrims. Thirty-five more agencies are going to face the same music within a few days because of similar allegations, according to religious affairs ministry sources. Hajj pilgrims filed complaints against these private agencies with the government, stating that they could not provide proper houses, food, vehicles and other facilities as per their packages last year. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabias Minister for Hajj and Umrah on Sunday approved Bangladeshs five-point proposal for the welfare of its hajj pilgrims, according to UNB.
A Bangladeshi delegation, led by State Minister for Religious Affairs Sheikh Md Abdullah, presented the recommendations at Mohammad Saleh bin Taher Bentens office in Mecca.
Bangladesh proposed decreasing the number of minimum hajj pilgrim quota from 150 to 100, launching pre-arrival immigration in Bangladesh instead of Saudi Arabia, ensuring modern transportation during hajj and increasing pilgrim quota by 20,000.
The Saudi minister assured of providing proper services for overall welfare of Bangladeshi pilgrims.
Religious Affairs Ministry Secretary Md Anisur Rahman, Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Golam Moshi, Consulate General of Bangladesh in Jeddah FM Borhan Uddin, Counselor (Hajj) Maksudur Rahman, Consul (Hajj) Md Abul Hasan and other top officials of the ministry were present in the meeting.
A total of 146,280 Bangladeshi people could perform Hajj as per OIC rules, but Saudi Arabia allowed only 127,198 Bangladeshi pilgrims to perform Hajj, citing a shortage of space and accommodation in Mina, the sources added.
A total of 127,198 pilgrims will perform Hajj this year. Among them, 120,000 would go to Saudi Arabia under private management and 7,198 under government arrangement.
The government has allowed a total of 986 private agencies to send pilgrims to Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj this year. The number of such agencies was 528 last year. A Hajj agency can send a minimum of 100 pilgrims this year, down from 250 last year, the sources told this correspondent.
We have already cancelled the licences of 10 Hajj agencies and their deposit money for failing in their duties. This step has been taken in keeping with the allegations filed by the pilgrims, ABM Amin Ullah Nuri, joint secretary of the religious affairs ministry, said.
Action will be taken against more Hajj agencies soon, he added.
He further said a total of 2,907 passports had been verified as of Monday under government arrangement and 14,039 under private management.
The last date of registration is March 5 under government arrangement and March 17 under private arrangement, he added.
When asked about quota extension, Nuri said: We have already sent an official letter to the Saudi authorities to increase the quota as per the OIC rules. Our state minister and secretary are now in Saudi Arabia.
They will press the authorities concerned there.
He expressed hope that the Saudi government would increase the quota considering that a large number of Bangladeshis people want to perform Hajj.
The demands placed by Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Indonesia for raising the Hajj quota have been pending for a long time. As per the OIC rules, Bangladeshs quota is 146,280, the joint secretary said.
He also said there was a possibility that the OIC might review the Hajj quota this year as the issue had remained pending for the last four to five years.
