While turning down A 40 percent allocation to private scheme for Hajj Group Organizers (HGOs) quota in the Hajj Policy 2016 on Tuesday, the top court equalised it to 50 percent each for public and private sector. "Reasons to be recorded separately and the petitions are converted into appeals and allowed in terms that quota of private and public sector restored to that which was earlier fixed as 50 percent each," said a short order of the apex court.
A THREE-member bench of Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali resumed the hearing of identical pleas of private HGOs against the Sindh High Court'S (SHC) verdict of April 16 which dismissed their petitions seeking a remedy against a 10 percent cut in the quota by the federal government's Hajj policy 2016.
On May 02, the Supreme Court issued directives to Secretary, Ministry of Religious Affairs, to inform the court after seeking instructions from the committee, constituted for Hajj Policy 2016 as to whether it can approve the new Hajj Policy in next two day. The ministry had proposed a reduction in Hajj quota of private sector from 50 to 40 per cent in the larger public interest to accommodate the maximum number of pilgrims.
After hearing the counsel for both sides and federation's law officers the court announced a short order and restored the quota earlier fixed for government and private HGOs: 50 percent each.
During the course of proceedings, Additional Attorney General for Pakistan Rana Waqar said that the quota for government scheme was increased from 50 to 60 percent under the demand from both the Houses of the Parliament and general public. He assured the bench that there was no malafide intention on the part of the government in increasing its quota from 50 to 60 percent and reducing the quota of private HGOs from 50 to 40 percent, adding that in order to accommodate maximum number of pilgrims and provide cheap Hajj package the government quota was increased.
However, Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali observed that it's the primary duty of the government to take every stakeholder into confidence before introducing changes in quota; otherwise, any step taken with good faith becomes suspicious.