Hyderabad, September 15: Muslims in the state fear that the desire of Minority Welfare Minister Syed Mohammed Ahmedullah to get PCC secretary Jaber Patel on board the Haj Committee, even though Mr Patel was not named in the list of members notified by the government on August 16, 2010, will play havoc with the arrangements for the annual pilgrimage.
According to sources, Mr Ahmdullah’s keenness to have Mr Patel on board the Haj Committee is making him put off the first meeting of the Haj Committee which has been constituted by the government on August 16 through a notification.
The Chairman of the Haj Committee will be selected at the first meeting of the nominated members.
Mr Ahmedullah is believed to be looking at ways to get the list of members revised so that Mr Patel can fit in the list of 16 members who have already been nominated.
Mr Ahmedullah’s moves are believed to be a cause of worry for former Minority Welfare minister Mohammed Ali Shabbir who is keen to see his favourite PCC secretary Zafar Jaweed as Chairman of the Haj Committee.
Meanwhile, PCC president D Srinivas is learnt to be keen to ensure that his choice Mohammed Habeeb Ahmed is made the Chairman. Mr Habeeb Ahmed also hails from Nizamabad, Mr Srinivas’s hometown. Mr Habeeb is also believed to be the choice of many voluntary organisations who have been associated with the preparations of the Haj, based on his past work.
The same voluntary organisations fear that the delaying tactics of the Minority Welfare Minister may prove to be disastrous for the pilgrims.
It may be mentioned here that the government was forced to form an ad-hoc committee with five members last year since a decision on the members was kept in abeyance till the last minute.
The last-minute formation of the ad-hoc committee is believed to have been the main cause of complaints of mismanagement from the pilgrims. The arrangements also drew a lot of flak by the Muslim community.
Some prominent Muslims believe that the government has not learnt from the mistakes made during the preparations last year since it was forced to announce the list of members only after a petition was filed in the High Court by All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul-ul-Muslimeen Floor Leader Akbaruddin Owaisi.
The Haj Camps are scheduled to be held from the second week of October since the first flight is scheduled to depart for Saudi Arabia on October 24 for Haj-2010.
Till the Chairman of the Haj Committee is selected and preparations begin, Muslims in the state will remain on tenterhooks.
———INN