Scrap goodwill delegations to Haj,SC tells Centre

The apex court made the observation after Vahanvati and Centre’s counsel Harris Beran told the bench that these goodwill delegations are sent to Haj every year to promote the country’s image as is being done by other countries.

However,the bench pointed out that the practice of sending goodwill delegations was started by India in 1967 after the Indo-Pak war as the neighbouring state used the pilgrimage to launch anti-India rhetoric.

“This necessity is no longer there. We will gradually reduce it to four or five and then scrap it altogether,” the bench said.

Earlier,the attorney general submitted that in a bid to ensure that more pilgrims go for the annual pilgrimage to Mecca,the official goodwill delegations which earlier used to comprise 30 people have over the years been pruned to 9-10 persons.

The apex court was hearing an appeal filed by the Centre challenging a Bombay High Court judgement which had directed the Ministry of External Affairs to allow certain private operators to operate the services of 800 of the 11,000 pilgrims earmarked under the VIP quota subsidised by the government.