77,000 Pakistanis to miss Hajj amid delays by private organizers

The Hajj pilgrimage of approximately 77,000 Pakistani citizens is in jeopardy, due to the failure of private Hajj group organizers to implement the Saudi government’s conditions in a timely manner.

However, in this regard, Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif has taken notice of this serious situation and ordered an investigation, while Saudi authorities have made it clear that it is not possible to accommodate these people due to the lack of zone allocation in the stipulated time and limited capacity in Mina.
According to media sources negligence by the relevant private sector, court orders, and complexities of the financial system have led to this crisis.

On Saturday, a committee was formed to investigate the Hajj arrangements and submit its recommendations to the PM within three days.
Moreover, the committee’s task is to “identify the responsible officers who have caused the current situation to be disrupted and suggest a way forward while protecting the interests of private pilgrims.”

On this issue, Pakistan Ulema Council Chairman Tahir Mahmood Ashrafi told stated hat out of the private Hajj quota of 90,000, Saudi Arabia has refused to accommodate the remaining ‘about 77,000 Hajj pilgrims,’ saying that since the zones were not allotted on time and there is little space in Mina, these people cannot be accommodated.

Additionally, this problem is also faced by other countries including India and Nigeria, but pilgrims from Pakistan are being affected the most, “due to the disorganization of Pakistan’s private sector. Saudi Arabia has been providing relief in the past, but this time it has not happened.”
According to a document obtained by media sources detailing the status of private Hajj, the Saudi government has introduced new regulations for Hajj 2024, according to which private companies will have a quota of at least 500 pilgrims.

Under this provision of the regulations, 902 Hajj group organizers were consolidated into 163 larger entities, known as ‘manazams’.
As per this brief, for the 2025 Hajj this year, in October-November 2024, the Saudi government increased the operator quota from 500 to 2,000 pilgrims and reduced the number of organizers to 41.

In November, private Hajj group organizers were directed to fulfill the prerequisites for Hajj bookings, but they challenged the service provider agreement in court.

Later, the Sindh High Court (SHC) issued a stay order on December 28, stopping the process of finalizing Hajj packages.
The document states that while the government sector met the deadline of 88,380 people in Saudi Arabia, the private sector faced difficulties due to limited funds.