Travelling To Haj Isn’t Merely A Holiday: Delhi HC Stays Suspension Of Registration Certificates & Quota Of Haj Group Organisers
The Delhi High Court has recently stayed the suspension of registration certificates and quota of Haj Group Organisers on the ground that travelling to Haj is not merely a holiday but a medium of practicing religion and faith which is a fundamental right.
A Vacation Bench of Justice Chandra Dhari Singh held, “Travelling to Haj is not merely a holiday but is a medium of practicing their religion and faith which is a fundamental right. This Court being the protector of the right of the pilgrims shall take the necessary steps in this regard. … Accordingly, to ensure that the pilgrims are not obstructed from completing their journey and undertake Haj, the comments in the consolidated list of allocation of Haj Quota for HAJ-2023 issued on 25th May, 2023 by the respondent which reads as “Registration Certificate & Quota Kept in abeyance till finalization of proceedings in complaint related matter” is stayed.”
The Bench observed that at such a stage, it is primarily concerned with the pilgrims who intend to travel on Haj Pilgrimage and have paid in advance to the petitioners for the same.
Advocate Sulaiman Mohd. Khan appeared for the petitioner while CGSC Rakesh Kumar appeared for the respondent.
In this case, a plea was filed challenging the suspension of the Registration Certificate and Quota of the Haj Group Organizers (HGOs) as published on May 25, 2023, in the Consolidated List of Allocation of Haj quota for Haj-2023 and the show cause notice subsequently was issued against the petitioner/HGO by the respondent. The counsel for the petitioner submitted that the registration certificate and Haj quota were arbitrarily ordered to be kept in abeyance till the finalization of proceedings in a complaint-related matter.
The High Court after hearing the arguments of the counsel noted, “This Court is an interpreter of the Constitution as well as the custodian of the rights of citizens, therefore this Court must exercise its powers under Article 226 of the Constitution to give effect to its provisions and the guarantees therein, lest they shall remain only in the black and white in the text but not in its application. An alternative must be sought and put into effect so that with the law taking its course, the same should not become a hurdle for the noble-intentioned citizens of this country who are seeking to undertake the Haj.”
The Court further noted that the Haj pilgrimage is undertaken by thousands of pilgrims from India annually and in order to enable the Indian Muslims willing to undertake the Haj pilgrimage, every year a bilateral treaty is executed between India and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in terms of which a quota of some pilgrims is allotted to India.
“The pilgrimage can be undertaken from India only either through the Haj Committee of India (for short, “the Haj Committee”) or the HGOs. HGOs usually act as tour operators for pilgrims, and provide a complete package right from the start of the journey from various places in India to Saudi Arabia, covering their accommodation in Saudi Arabia, arranging and making available food, transportation in Saudi Arabia, providing foreign exchange in the form of Saudi Riyals and their return to India. The majority of Haj pilgrims are taken care of by the Haj Committee, and only a limited number of pilgrims can undertake the Haj pilgrimage through HGOs as per the quota of the respective HGO”, said the Court.
The Court referred to the judgment in the case of Union of India and Others v. Rafique Shaikh Bhikan and Another (2012) 6 SCC 265 wherein it was emphasized that the main purpose of the Haj Policy was to ensure that pilgrims must be able to perform their pilgrimage duty without undertaking any difficulty, harassment or suffering. It, therefore, directed the respondents to ensure that the pilgrims being affected by the defaults do not suffer and are able to undertake the Haj Pilgrimage without any obstruction and said that the respondents may proceed with the investigation in pursuance of the show cause notice issued to the petitioner.
Accordingly, the Court disposed of the plea.
Cause Title- Al Tawaf Hajj and Umrah Travel and Tourism v. Union of India (Neutral Citation: 2023:DHC:4137)
