Additional fee collected due to increase of Saudi Riyal rate: Indian Haj Committee
Haj Pilgrimage- 2018
Bengaluru, July 05: The Haj Committee of India asked the Haj pilgrims to pay additional amount along with the fee paid already as Saudi Arabia increased rates for various services and facilities.
Haj Committee of India chief executive officer Dr Maqsood Ahmed Khan clarified in his circular issued on June 26 about the factors caused additional fee for Haj pilgrimage. The bus fare for taking the pilgrims from Airport to the place of their accommodation was increased from 347.50 Saudi Riyals to 391.18 Riyals, Metro rail fare was increased from 250 Riyal to 400 Riyal, bed fee was fixed at 147 and Adahi coupons amount was increased from 450 Riyal to 475 Riyal. Moreover, the Air India has increased the airport taxes. As a result, the pilgrims who leave from Chennai airport have to pay Rs 200, from Goa, Varanasi and Kolkata airports Rs 850, from Mumbai airport Rs 250, Nagpura Rs 200 and those who leave from Srinagar should pay Rs 900 more, he said.
Apart from this, the rate of optional services like (Adahi (Qurbani), Johfa Meeqat and revision) was also hiked. For Qurbani coupons, one has to pay Rs 8508. Those who have already paid Rs 8000, have to pay additional Rs 508. For Johfa Meeqat of Shia Muslims, additional Rs 31,000 should be given, repeated pilgrims have to pay Rs 35,821 and those who have already paid the amount, should pay Rs 619 more, he said.
The additional amount could be made cash payment or credit the amount to the Haj Committee of India State Bank of India account (3217500010 ‘Fee Type 25’) or Union Bank of India (A/c: 318702010406009) through Green Pay In Slip or through online from the website: www.hajcommittee.gov.in, he said.
In Madina, the accommodation fee is slashed from 950 Riyal to 900 Riyals.
- Dr Maqsood Ahmed Khan, CEO, HCOI
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
