ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Tuesday welcomed the Saudi government’s decision of allowing Hajj 2020 only to a limited number of pilgrims, saying it was perfectly in line with the principles of Shariah since the world was facing a deadly pandemic and needed to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
“The Saudi Hajj minister took us into confidence before making a formal announcement for which we are thankful,” Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Pir Noor-ul-Haq Qadri said on Tuesday in a statement after discussing the issue thoroughly in a federal cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan in Islamabad through a video link.
“This is a difficult but wise decision to protect pilgrims from the whole Muslim world from the coronavirus,” Qadri said, adding that the government would fully support the decision.
The novel coronavirus has infected over nine million people in the world with 475,679 related deaths since its emergence in December last year in China’s Wuhan city. Nations across the globe have taken different precautionary measures to stem the spread of the virus, including banning social and religious gatherings.
The Saudi ministry of Hajj announced on Monday that only a limited number of people currently residing in the kingdom would be allowed to perform their pilgrimage this year, irrespective of their nationality.
“King Salman bin Abdulaziz and the government of Saudi Arabia have always ensured to provide best facilities to Hajj pilgrims,” the minister said while hailing the timely decision of limiting the number of pilgrims.
A total of 180,000 Pakistanis were scheduled to perform the pilgrimage this year, but the government has now decided to return the money of all applicants.
“Those applicants who don’t take back their Hajj payments will be selected for the pilgrimage next year without balloting,” Imran Siddiqui, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Religious Affairs, told Arab News.
He said the ministry would soon finalize a procedure to return the payments of Hajj applicants and share its details with them via text messages.
“Pakistanis residing in Saudi Arabia and our diplomatic staff in the Kingdom would perform the Hajj and represent the country,” Siddiqui added.
Pakistan currently has a 2.5 million-strong expat community living in Saudi Arabia.
