Govt starts probe into allegations against Hajj agencies

প্রকাশিত: 22 December 2016, 7:22:55 pm

The Religious Affairs Ministry has started investigation into the allegations against the Hajj agencies that failed to send pilgrims to Saudi Arabia for performing Hajj and serve the pilgrims, who were finally sent to the country, during last Hajj season.

A probe committee, led by a joint secretary of the ministry, has started probing into 200 allegations which were submitted to the ministry and the Hajj offices in Dhaka and Saudi Arabia.

According to ministry officials, the committee will complete investigation by the first week of January as new pre-registration for performing Hajj in 2017 will begin on January 15.

The ministry will take necessary steps against the guilty Hajj agencies and publish a complete list of approved agencies before starting the pre-registration. The guilty agencies will not be allowed to send pilgrims next year, sources said.

Religious Affairs Ministry’s Secretary Abdul Jalil said a high level committee of the ministry is working on the allegations, which were submitted to the authorities concerned during last Hajj season.

“The probe committee will start hearing on the allegations. According to the recommendations of the committee, necessary steps will be taken,” he said.

Hajj Agencies Association of Bangladesh (HAAB) Secretary General Shaikh Md Abdullah told this correspondent that they have not yet received any complain from any pilgrim. If they get any allegation, necessary steps will be taken.

“If the victims want HAAB’s help to recover their money from the fraud agencies, which failed to send pilgrims to Saudi Arabia during the last Hajj season, HAAB will help them,” he added.

According to the officials of the ministry, more than 200 allegations were submitted to them. Most of the allegations were filed, alleging mismanagement of the Hajj agencies in providing accommodation and food.

More than 40 complainants said that they could not perform Hajj this year, despite paying more than the package money to the Hajj agencies and their appointed agents or middlemen.

Ohidul Haque of Rangpur Badarganj’s Damodarpur and his wife Mosammat Hasna Begum failed to perform Hajj this year, despite paying around Tk 8.50 lakh to the agent of a Hajj agency, Zaman Enterprise.

Ohidul and his wife Hasna alleged that they had given Tk 6 lakh to Zaman Enterprise’s agent Rafiqul Islam who later took Tk 2.5 lakh from the couple, signing an affidavit. They said they were called to Dhaka for sending to Saudi Arabia on September 2, but the agency did not send them to KSA until September 15 and returned the documents to them.

Ohidul urged the government to punish the Hajj agency and its agent and others involved in the forgery. He also sought government’s help to recover the money.