President All India Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawrat Syed Shahabuddin has welcomed the proposal to do away with Hajj Subsidy, but with a rider. He has pleaded for calling global tenders for Hajj Flights from International carriers to bring down the Air Fare and let the Hajj Committee select carriers of its own choice. He estimates that this practice may bring down the airfare up to 75%. Presently only Indian Airlines is sole official carrier for Hajj pilgrims and realises the fare at the rate of its own choice.
Prominent Muslim intellectual and former MP, in his letter (April 10) to Mr. Shashi Tharoor, Minister of State in MEA, (who has now resigned) has reminded him of his previous letters: I have pointed to you in several letters when you took charge as Minister of State for External Affair, Incharge for Hajj, that apart from raising the Hajj Flight fare payable by the pilgrims, the real reduction in the subsidy can be affected only by: (a) Introducing global tender for selecting the carrier for the Hajj flight, through the Hajj Committee. (b) Hard negotiations with the eligible renderers’ on the basis of current return IATA fare, between Delhi and Jeddah in Us Dollars, to bring it down to 75 % of the quoted fare. (c) The rise in the Charter Hajj fare payable by the pilgrims in proportion to inflation in India since 1980 or the year in which the subsidy was introduced, in 3 or 4 stages, with due publicity.
Syed Shahabuddin has maintained: “Unless these three steps are not taken merely an arbitrary cut in the number of pilgrims who avails of Hajj flights will not serve the purpose indeed we have been asking the Government of Saudi Arabia to raise the Indian quota, because of the rising population of Muslims in the country.”