Govt has no control as 70 pc Hajj expenses are made in Saudi Arabia, minister tells Senate

Rejecting the 70 percent increase in Hajj expenditures, the opposition took up in the Senate the recent 2019 Hajj Policy by the government and demanded a subsidy.

During the Senate session chaired by Chairperson Sadiq Sanjrani, Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) Senator Mushtaq Ahmed termed the increase in Hajj expenses a 'drone attack' and called the government's attention to it and submitted a notice.

The senator added that the government which claimed to turn the country into a Madina-like state was now raising the expenditure that is stopping the people from performing this religious obligation, local media reported.

In reply, the Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ali Muhammad Khan said that the government has no control on the hike in expenses as 70 percent of expenditures are made in Saudi Arabia. He added that the government was still trying to give maximum relief to the pilgrims.

The Senate chairman was also of the opinion that a subsidy should be given to the pilgrims.