Raise Haj quota, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister urges Prime Minister

Chennai: Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Saturday urged the Union government to enhance the Haj quota for Tamil Nadu, taking into account the huge number of applications received by the state for Haj 2014.

In her letter to the Prime Minister regarding the issue, Jayalalithaa said that the Tamil Nadu State Haj Committee had received a total of 13,159 applications from pilgrims for Haj 2014. Based on the Muslim population, the Haj Committee of India allotted a quota of only 2,672 seats to the state.

“As per the guidelines for Haj 2014, out of the quota of 2,672 seats, 1,180 seats have been utilised for reserved category pilgrims and 1,492 pilgrims have been selected under the general category. Subsequently, only 100 more seats have been allotted by the Haj Committee of India, leaving a large number of applicants disappointed,” the Chief Minister had stated.

She pointed out that during previous years the government of India had released additional seats over and above the quota, enabling more pilgrims from Tamil Nadu to perform Haj.

“Last year, 3,696 pilgrims from Tamil Nadu performed Haj. There is great expectation among those who have applied for Haj 2014 and they are anxiously awaiting confirmation,” Jayalalithaa pointed out.

The Chief Minister has requested the PM to advise the minister of external affairs to increase the Haj quota for TN considering the huge number of applications received this year.