Pilgrims pray at the Kaaba and the Station of Ibrahim (Maqam Ibrahim) as they attend Friday prayers at the Grand Mosque ahead of the start of hajj in the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia. REUTERS
ISLAMABAD:
The National Assembly Standing Committee on Religious Affairs and Inter-Faith Harmony has observed that some international airlines were offering airfares approximately Rs. 1,00,000 lower per passenger than those charged by national carriers for pilgrims travelling to Najaf Sharif to participate in the Arbaeen Walk.
The committee chair directed the Ministry of Religious Affairs to take notice of the matter, coordinate with the relevant ministry and the national airline, and take appropriate measures to provide relief to Zaireen.
The National Assembly Standing Committee on Religious Affairs also questioned officials over complaints about Hajj arrangements, with members expressing concern over food quality, transport issues and the continued award of contracts to a blacklisted company.
Briefing the committee on Hajj 2026 preparations which met last Wednesday, the director general Hajj said only around 3,000 complaints had been received this year from more than 100,000 Pakistani pilgrims, compared with over 9,000 complaints when the Hajj contingent numbered around 90,000.
He said the complaints mainly related to food and transportation, adding that some pilgrims had raised concerns about breakfast items, while others complained about transport disruptions caused by a Saudi policy suspending transport services one hour before prayers.
The director general told the committee meeting, chaired by its chairperson Shagufta Jumani, that the pilgrims were provided three meals daily at a cost of Saudi Riyal36 per person and added that some had even complained of being served too much mutton.
Jumani questioned the ministry’s performance, noting that the number of complaints had remained around 3,000 annually for the past three years despite the DG serving in the position for nearly four years. She said officials were presenting a positive picture while social media was flooded with complaints.
She further questioned why the ministry had continued signing contracts with a blacklisted company for the past three years. She challenged the DG’s claim that an award received from Saudi Arabia reflected outstanding performance, saying it was merely a token presented by the Saudi government.
Rejecting the criticism, the director general Hajj said that the award had been presented to only seven of 40 Hajj missions in recognition of their better performance and said he disagreed with the chairperson’s assessment.
Jumani said the committee had no personal differences with the director general but stressed that “the guests of Allah” deserved better treatment. She also noted that although Muharram had not yet ended, around 325,000 people had already registered for Hajj and observed that Pakistan could receive a quota of 200,000 pilgrims this year.
Committee member Ijazul Haq said only two videos highlighting Hajj-related issues had gone viral on social media and maintained that arrangements this year had generally improved. He urged the ministry to adopt a transparent process for awarding contracts, involve more airlines, including Air Arabia and Saudia.
He urged the ministry to present the three-year Hajj policy to the committee before seeking cabinet approval. Religious Affairs Minister Sardar Yousaf said cabinet approval for the policy had been obtained because of time constraints and to avoid disrupting Hajj preparations.
He added that the committee’s input could still be incorporated and confirmed that 325,000 registrations had been received so far. He said that Pakistan had requested increase in its Hajj quota, although the final decision rested with the Saudi Hajj Advisory Council.
