Chief Justice Lahore High Court (LHC) Umar Ata Bandial has extended the stay to April 18, restraining Ministry of Religious Affairs from allotting quota of 5000 pilgrims to newly registered Hajj tour operators sought. The court also sought a detailed reply from the ministry.
Earlier, the petitioner counsel Muhammad Azhar Sidduqe alleged that without confirming any credibility of the private Hajj tour operators the ministry allotted quota to 726 operators within a day. Aqsa World Travel & Tours (Pvt) Ltd, Ashfaque Ahmad Mirza and other private tour operators filed the application in petition against the Hajj policy. Their counsel submitted that on June 6, 2012 the LHC Chief Justice had ordered the ministry to allot quota to the new operators but quota of only 192 pilgrims was allotted. He alleged that the remaining quota was allotted to old tour operators in violation of the court's directions.