The government is moving forward to frame a legal structure in a bid to bring more discipline in the Hajj and Umrah management.
A bill in this regard is likely to be placed in the current session of the Parliament. The 12th JS session began yesterday (Thursday).
Parliament sources said that some bills, including the bill related to the Hajj and Umrah management, are ready for placing in the session. However, some bills may not be placed finally as the current session will end within a short time for the second wave of Covid-19.
Md Nuruzzaman, secretary in-charge of Parliament Secretariat, on Thursday told Bangladesh Post that ‘Hajj and Umrah Management Bill-2021’ is also in the list to be placed in the Parliament. The session was adjourned till Saturday after Parliament unanimously adopted a condolence motion expressing profound grief at the demise of a sitting MP Mahmud Us Samad Chowdhury and some noted personalities
The bill may be placed on Saturday or Sunday. If it is not possible this time, the bill will be placed in the next session, he added.
Earlier, the Religious Affairs Ministry finalised the draft of the ‘Hajj and Umrah Management Bill’, which was approved by the Cabinet on December 28 last. “We hope that the proposed draft law will be placed in the Parliament for being passed,” said additional secretary (Hajj) of the ministry Md Sharafat Zaman.
After enactment of the law, Hajj and Umrah activities will be monitored by the government directly. The government has been carrying out the activities only on the basis of a Hajj policy for the past 50 years, since the country’s independence. The policy is released each year just before the pilgrimage season. Against this backdrop, the ministry framed the draft in line with a directive of the Cabinet, issued in 2012, in order to enact a law instead of the existing policy.
According to the draft law, the real Hajj pilgrims will get benefit as none without having registration could deal with any pilgrim. The registration of any Hajj or Umrah agency can be cancelled and its deposit can be seized if it is involved in corruption, fraudulence and human trafficking in the name of conducting Hajj and Umrah. If any agency gets warnings for two years in a row, its registration will be suspended automatically for the same period. Hajj-related anomalies committed by Bangladeshis even in Saudi Arabia could be treated under the proposed law. A Hajj agency will be fined maximum Tk 50 lakh, while an Umrah agency with Tk 15 lakh for irregularities.
Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam said that in absence of law, no legal action could be taken against irregularities in Hajj and Umrah management in many cases. “Saudi Arabia changed the Hajj management system in 2011. Later, India, Pakistan, Malaysia and Indonesia have framed laws. We also need a legal structure to equip with Hajj management. So, the Cabinet okayed the bill,” he added.
It is alleged that each of the Hajj and Umrah agency owner has several licenses. If one is cancelled, he or she runs the business with another license. In absence of law, pilgrims under private management face immense sufferings. Many agencies don’t provide proper services even after taking money from Hajj pilgrims. A section of agency owners and some ministry employees consider the Hajj season as a ‘money-making season’.
Many Hajj pilgrims complain that they often face suffering and mismanagement after going to Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj. Allegations are brought against many Hajj and Umrah agencies that they were not arranging accommodation and transportation as promised. The agencies are accused of many other mismanagements including anomalies in Muallim (guide) management and non-cooperation to pilgrims.
After Hajj in 2019, action was taken against about 100 Hajj agencies in several phases following various mismanagement allegations.
An official of Religious Affairs Ministry said that they designed the draft law to control mismanagement in the sector. After enactment of the law, the government will regulate Hajj, Umrah, and the private agencies to prevent the sufferings and harassment of Bangladeshi pilgrims, he added.