Hajj pilgrimage at taxpayers' expense

Spending Tk 10.15 crore of public money, the religious affairs ministry is sending 318 “pious Muslims”, including financially solvent people, lawmakers, and government high officials, to perform hajj this year.

Priority was given to those from Mymensingh, Gopalganj, Kishoreganj, and Faridpur.

A staggering 79 people, including Religious Affairs Minister Motiur Rahman's relatives, personal staffers, and close aides, were nominated from Mymensingh-4 constituency, from where the minister got elected in 2009.

Minister Motiur earlier sent over 40 government staffers and officials working in the constituency to Saudi Arabia as members of “Hajj Assistant Delegation”. Two gunmen and a “privileges staff” of the minister were also in the 171-member delegation.

At least 10 Awami League leaders and three lawmakers are among the people who made the “free-hajj” list. The list also includes 15 officials and staffers of the Bangabhaban and at least 24 from the Prime Minister's Office, the Gonobhaban and the PM's office in the parliament.

Former adviser to a caretaker government and former comptroller and auditor general M Hafizuddin Khan told The Daily Star that sending people for hajj spending public money was highly unethical.

He said the government has nominated people from some particular districts and pro-ruling party men, which was shameful.

“How could a minister nominate around 80 people of his constituency for performing hajj at the cost of people's money? I am so surprised to hear this,” he said.

“A country cannot run in this way. The government should stop such practice and should punish those who are involved in the misuse of public money.”

Maulana Farid Uddin Masoud, the Imam of Sholakia Eid congregation in Kishoreganj, said Allah has not made hajj mandatory for those who are unable to meet all necessary expenses of the pilgrimage.

“Not only that, the person will have to be rich enough to bear the expenses of his family member during his or her stay in Saudi Arabia,” he said.

“Hajj was made farz [mandatory] for only those who are physically and financially sound,” he added.

Zafarullah Khan, principal of Mahrabul Ulm Madrasa in Keraniganj, said there was no logic behind going on hajj with public money. Like Farid, Zafarullah said hajj was mandatory only on those physically and financially capable.

He said performing hajj with public money was unethical.

Responding to a query, he said, “Allah is the sole authority to accept or reject someone's hajj.”

Yet, ruling Awami League lawmakers Kamal Ahmed Majumder from Dhaka-15, Safura Begum and Fatematuz Zohura Rani, elected to reserved seats for women in parliament, would perform hajj as pious Muslims this year with the government bearing their expenses.

Three-time MP Kamal, a businessman by profession, was made commercial important person (CIP) five times, according to a Jatiya Sangsad Secretariat publication in 2012.

“I am going to Saudi Arabia not only to perform hajj,” Safura told The Daily Star, adding that the government had nominated her to look after hajj management and the pilgrims.

The lawyer by profession said the religious affairs minister had asked her to do the job.

According to a circular of the ministry, each of the “pious Muslims” would get Tk 34,400 cash as expenses for meals during their 40-day stay in Saudi Arabia. The nominated government staffers and officials would also get their salaries and other benefits here, the circular added. 

The National Hajj and Umrah Policy has the provision for sending certain number of “pious Muslims”, nominated by the president, prime minister and religious affairs minister, to Saudi Arabia for performing hajj with the government paying for it. 

They would get all facilities as per the lowest hajj package rate under government management, the policy said.

The policy does not mention whether the affluent should be disqualified for the free hajj.

Asked, Religious Affairs Secretary Abdul Jalil yesterday told The Daily Star that “pious Muslims” were nominated as per the recommendations of the office of the president, prime minister, religious affairs ministry and other important people of the government.

He said the ministry had sent a list of over 1,000 people to the PMO. "Upon the PMO's approval, we prepared the final list," the secretary said.

 Asked what the grounds for getting selected were, he said the PMO and the religious affairs minister would be able to talk about that.

About nominating many people from the minister's constituency, he said the minister has the authority to do so.

The Daily Star could not reach Minister Motiur for comments despite repeated attempts since Monday night.

Ruhul Amin, senior vice-president, AL Gopalganj Unit; Shariful Islam, general secretary ward-2 of Singipara in Tungipara of Gopalganj; Masud Ali Khan Mamun, general secretary of Koukaran union AL in Patuakhali; Abdus Sattar, religious affairs secretary of Rajarhat union AL of Kurigram; AHM Khairul Anam Chowdhury Selim, president of Noakhali AL; Shawkat Ali, president of Gorgori union AL in Bagha of Rajshahi; Mannan Mia, president of ward-9 of Delduar unit AL in Tangail; Rafiza Zaman Khan, vice-president of Motijheel Mohila AL; Jannatul Chowdhury Anonna, women affairs secretary of Uttorkhan union AL in Dhaka; and Amir Ali, vice-president of Pallabi unit AL in Dhaka have been nominated.

Yusuf Khan Pathan, chairman of Mymensingh Zila Parishad, was also on the list.

Apart from some class-III and class-IV government staffers, several high-level government officials, including Sheikh Md Wahiduzzaman, director general of secondary and higher education directorate; Mohammad Jahangir, chief accountant of Bangladesh Railway; Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan designer of Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban; Mafizul Islam, administrative official of the finance ministry; Abdul Halim Munshi, assistant director of Bangladesh Jatiya Sangsad; Shahid Ullah, assistant secretary; Masud Ahmed, joint secretary of the LGRD ministry, were nominated for the hajj trip.

Source at the ministry said 124 “pious Muslims” were sent to perform hajj in 2014, 265 in 2015 and 280 last year.