Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Monday observed that innocent people are being swindled every year in the name of Hajj and Umrah.

The court also said that judicial notice was required to be taken to curb this practice, adding that courts were required to treat such cases differently.

“Thus, it has become imperative to issue directions within the powers vested in the Court under Articles 184 (3) and 187 of the Constitution to the relevant authorities within the Federation and the Provinces to do what is required by the law and the Constitution to do,” the court ruled.

The SC ruled that the Religious Affairs Ministry would update its website in local languages.

It also said, “The ministry would give wide publicity in local languages through handbills and notifications, which shall be sent to the commissioners, deputy commissioners, local governments’ representatives in all provinces and federal capital as well as anti-corruption watchdog.”

A well thought out campaign need to be done positively within two months and this campaign should be vigorously carried out at least three months before the Hajj Season of next year commences, the top court added. Justice Dost Muhammad issued these directions while authoring an eight-page judgement against bail pleas of fake travel agents.

The allegations against the applicants were that they were running a fake travel agency, Mustafa Manpower Travel Agency in Charsadda, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, who apparently swindled pilgrims.

The agency employees, including Qari Ameer Ahmed Shah, disappeared with the collected money. Neither those, from whom the money was collected, were sent to KSA for Hajj nor were they returned the money.

During the hearing before a three-member bench, the investigating officer said that a request regarding fraud had also been conveyed to the National Accountability Bureau Khyber Pakhtunkhwa but so far no action had been taken.

The court observed that the ministry was also not performing its statutory obligations to curb such malpractices.

The court while dismissing the bail pleas observed, “Unauthorized Hajj and Umrah Tour Operators have swindled millions of money of the poor public in the past. All the watch dogs to prevent such corruption, corrupt practices and fraud remained in deep slumber till the time the crimes were fully consummated.”

The court further observed that all the investigation agencies, meant to curb corruption, had been found ‘consistently inconsistent’ in performing obligatory duties and allowed the fraudsters to commit such crimes openly in big cities.