Jammu and Kashmir People’s Democratic Party (PDP) chief, Mehbooba Mufti has alleged that Saudi Arabia has slashed the private Hajj pilgrim quote for India by 80 per cent.
The former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir has urged Union Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to ‘immediately’ intervene and take up the matter with the government of Saudi Arabia. The sudden decision, Mufti said, has caused distress for pilgrims and tour operators calling it ‘disturbing news.’
“Disturbing news emerging from Saudi Arabia. Reports indicate that 80% of India’s private Hajj quota has been cut abruptly,” Mufti said in a post on X on Sunday, April 13.
“This sudden decision is causing immense distress for pilgrims and tour operators across the country,” she said and urged “Ministry of External Affairs to immediately intervene by taking up this matter with the Saudi government to seek a resolution.”
Hajj is an annual pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina, the two holiest cities of Islam in Saudi Arabia. The pilgrimage is performed during a particular period that culminates with Eid-ul-Adha.
When is Hajj 2025?
This year Hajj is expected to take place from June 4 to June 9, 2025, depending on the sighting of the moon marking the beginning of Zil-Hajj, the 12th month of Islamic calender. Pilgrims will likely begin their journey to Saudi Arabia as early as the end of April.
The Hajj pilgrimage for Indian pilgrims is conducted either through the Hajj Committee of India (HCoI), a statutory organisation under the administrative control of the Ministry of Minority Affairs, or through Private Tour Operators (PTOs) also known as Hajj Group Organisers (HGOs)
In 2024, about 140,000 Indians proceeded for Hajj, according to government of India numbers.
In January 2025, India signed a Haj agreement with Saudi Arabia, finalising a quota of 1,75,025 pilgrims for itself. Union Ministry of Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju signed the agreement with Saudi Arabia’s Minister for Hajj and Umrah Tawfiq Bin Fawzan Al-Rabiah in Jeddah.
“Hajj Agreement 2025 signed with Tawfiq Bin Fawzan Al-Rabiah, Minister for Hajj and Umrah of Kindom of Saudi Arabia. Finalized a quota of 1,75,025 pilgrims from India for Hajj 2025. We are committed to providing the best possible services to all our Haj pilgrims,” Rijiju said in a post on X in January.
In a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha in January, Rijiju said that for the year 2025, the quota has been distributed within the same range between HCoI and HGOs, in the ratio of 70:30, which has been communicated vide the Hajj Policy-2025 issued on August 5, 2024.
LiveMint couldn’t verify the exact number of private Hajj pilgrims headed to Saudi Arabia this year.
For Hajj 2025, the quota of Haj pilgrims allotted to HGOs is 30 per cent of India’s total of 1,75,025, i.e. 52,507, Rijiju said. He also said that in the last five years, the quota distribution between HCoI and HGOs has varied between 70:30 and 80:20.
‘52,000 Indian pilgrims in lurch’
A recent report in the Times of India said that the fate of about 52,OOO Indian Hajj pilgrims was uncertain as Saudi Arabia has cancelled the zones in Mina (a stop during Hajj in the Kingdom) that were earlier allotted to private tour operators.
Saudi Arabia has taken many crowd control measures during Hajj this year around. The Kingdom has imposed new travel restrictions, suspending the issuance of certain visas to people of 14 countries including Bangladesh, Pakistan and India, as per reports.
However, the suspension does not impact pilgrims from India who are travelling to Saudi Arabia strictly for Hajj and have secured Hajj visas. The suspension specifically targets other visa categories to prevent unauthorised individuals from performing Hajj without proper registration and to avoid overcrowding..
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