Haj 2020: UP govt asks pilgrims to apply for refund

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], June 24 (ANI): A day after Saudi Arabia announced that it will hold a "very limited" Hajj this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, Uttar Pradesh Minority Minister Mohsin Raza on Wednesday asked the people, who had registered themselves for Haj pilgrims, to apply for a refund.
"I would like to request people of Uttar Pradesh who had applied for the Haj pilgrimage, to apply for a refund as the government was informed by the Suadi Arabia that Haj will not happen this year for the foreigners," said Raza while speaking to ANI.
However, people residing in Saudi Arabia can go to the Mecca as the Saudi Arabia government will make arrangements for them, he said.
"The entire money of all the pilgrims, who have deposited in the Haj Committee, will be transferred to their bank account without any deduction," Mohsin told ANI.
On June 23, Saudi Arabia announced that it will hold a "very limited" Hajj this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, with people already living in the kingdom allowed to take part in the pilgrimage that begins in late July.
More than two million people perform the annual pilgrimage in the holy city of Mecca every year, including many travelling from abroad. (ANI)