ISLAMABAD: A parliamentary panel on Tuesday came down hard on the Religious Affairs Ministry for its incompetence in facilitating the intending pilgrims, saying it was all due to corruption and nepotism.

The National Assembly’s standing committee on religious affairs and interfaith harmony which held its meeting here with Aamir Dogar in the chair, said the ministry has miserably failed to resolve the issues confronting the Hajj aspirants.

The Religious Affairs Minister, Chaudhry Salik Hussain, conspicuously skipped the meeting, which according to some members of the committee is because of his inability to manage the matters for the forthcoming Hajj.

Dogar stressed the need for proper arrangements to assist religious tourists both domestically and internationally.

He urged the ministry to establish a framework for Zaireen and present a schedule of visits for both sides by next meeting.

Dogar directed the secretary Ministry of Religious Affairs to complete the composition of Ziarat Management Committee (ZMC) and write a letter to the Speaker for the required nomination of one Member of National Assembly as per rules.

The secretary briefed the committee on the ministry’s operations, performance, and challenges.

The committee directed the ministry to promptly address the issue of Pakistani beggars in Saudi Arabia in coordination with the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development.

The committee deferred consideration on “The National Commission for Minorities Bill, 2024” due to the absence of its mover.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024