Shameless Imams want hardworking Hindu taxpayers to pay for their trips to Mecca
These people have no shame. On the one hand they claim to follow the Koran, which clearly says that people going on Haj should pay their own expenses, and on the other hand they want the hard-working taxpayers of Hindu-majority India to pay their hard-earned money for their trips to Mecca.
These shameless beggars are saying that massive subsidies for costly airfares "is just like the biscuits, water and other provisions provided by the people to Hajis". If so, then those must be very expensive biscuits !
Subsidizing these trips to Mecca benefits Saudi Arabian economy by giving them tourism revenue, and India only suffers massive loss of foreign exchange.
It is also completely against Secularism to subsidize religious activities in this way. No Government of India has ever given even one rupee in subsidy to a Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, or Jain to go on any religious missions. Only the Muslims are chosen for these kinds of favours.
The Imams are saying that taking Government subsidies for going on Haj does not violate "Koranic beliefs". Perhaps they are right. The Koran has always supported taking money, land, or women, from non-Muslims. It is to be expected that the Koran would enthusiastically support the idea of the foolish Government of a Kaafir-majority poor country -- with millions of starving Hindu children and Hindu farmers committing suicide to escape the pains of poverty and hunger -- giving tens of millions of Dollars to Muslim fundamentalists and extremists going on vacation and Islamic terrorism conferences in Saudi Arabia, less than 50 years after Muslim extremists killed off millions of its people and took away 25 per cent of its land, and while Muslim extremists plot and carry out terrorist attacks on its Hindu citizens on a regular basis.
Those who do not understand why I call Muslim religious events in Mecca "Islamic terrorism conferences" above should take a look at the Koran. It is full of gruesomely violent thoughts and instructions: asking Muslims to kill, maim, kidnap, rape and torture non-Muslims practically constantly throughout the book.
No wonder that is what Muslims have been doing all over the world, throughout the last fourteen hundred years.
Times of India reports:
Subsidy not against Quranic beliefs: clerics
[27 Aug, 2006 0348hrs ISTTIMES NEWS NETWORK]
LUCKNOW: The order of the Lucknow Bench of Allahabad High Court banning subsidy on all pilgrimages has been interpreted by the Muslim clerics and religious leaders in the state in different ways. This order will affect only the Haj pilgrims as they are the only ones who get a subsidy from the government.
The clerics were unanimous in their opinion that the subsidy did not go against the Quranic belief that a Haji should finance his pilgrimage on his own.
Opinions and interpretations of the Muslim clerics and leaders varied from a shade of remorse to finding other ways of aiding the Haj pilgrims.
Zafaryab Jilani, member, All-India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB), said, "There is no issue about removing the subsidy for Haj pilgrims. The government was only giving subsidy on the air fair. It can allow us to use other airlines —instead of Air India— who are more than ready to give discounts." The government spends huge sums on religious events like Kumbh Mela, Amarnath yatra and so on, he added.
Fazlu Rehman, Imam of Tille Wali masjid, however, said that it was bad for the Muslims. "We respect the court and would not say anything against it but the subsidy on Haj pilgrimage was a great help to the Muslims," he said. The Imam stated that a meeting of the Muslim Personal Law Board would be called as soon as the papers of the order are
available to them. "We will together decide the future course of action."
Yusuf Qureshi of the United Democratic Front (UDF) stated that the government will be the loser as they were getting one lakh passengers for Air India at one go.
"Now these passengers will go through the travel agents and get better facilities than that provided by the old Air India planes," Qureshi said. Qureshi said that the government started doling out a subsidy after the cruise service was discontinued. Arshad Khan of People's Democratic Front (PDF) said that the subsidy should continue. "The court will do what it thinks fit while the government should should what it deems fit," he said.
The Muslim clerics and leaders denied that enjoying a subsidy on Haj pilgrimage is against the tenets of Islam. The Quran says that the expenditure incurred by a Haj pilgrim should be borne by the person himself — or his close relatives. Jilani said, "The Muslims actually pay more as the Airlines are charging more than the cost of the service they provide."
He pointed out that the travel agents were charging a similar fee and yet making a profit. Arshad Khan of PDF expressed similar views.
Imam Fazlu Rehman said that the subsidy is like somebody giving you something as a gift on your way to the pilgrimage. "As Indian citizens we are entitled to this much support from the government.
The expenditure is high and the subsidy is a big help. It should be treated as providing a free train under special circumstances," he said.
Qureshi argued that the subsidy was in the form of gifts that are given to those going on a pilgrimage. "It is just like the biscuits, water and other provisions provided by the people to Hajis," he said. Jilani said that the Haj subsidy matter was in court for a long time and the government lost as their counsel failed to provide a proper defence.
Times of India reports:
Govt ready to subsidise all pilgrimages
Dhananjay Mahapatra
[15 Apr, 2007 0017hrs ISTTIMES NEWS NETWORK]
NEW DELHI: In its determination to protect Haj subsidies, particularly in view of the ongoing elections in UP, Centre has told Supreme Court that it was ready to offer similar support, at state expense, to pilgrimages organised by other communities.
Positing its offer as being in sync with the "secular ideals" of the Constitution, Centre virtually made a policy announcement by agreeing to provide financial assistance to Hindus, Sikhs, Christians, Jains and other religious communities. Government's brief appeared quite clear: to restate its commitment to Haj subsidy.
Though Supreme Court had earlier rescued the Centre by staying an Allahabad High Court order banning Haj subsidy, it could not restrain itself from asking the government whether it had ever subsidised the annual Sikh Jatha to Nankana Sahib in Pakistan. Keen not to leave any chink in its Haj armour, Centre swiftly agreed that it was open to providing subsidies for other pilgrimages too.
Centre did not specify whether assistance would be in the same scale as is being given to Haj pilgrims. Centre's earlier assertions regarding help to other communities were limited to arrangements for law and order during the Kumbh Mela and the management of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra.
With the Congress-led government seeking to challenge its bitter critic Samajwadi Party in UP for the minority vote in the state, Centre would see a setback on Haj subsidies as a big blow to its political calculations. Even as Congress has been promising minority-centric measures in the wake of the Sachar committee, striking down of the Haj subsidy would have quickly set its "secular" rivals at the party's throat.
The ministry of external affairs's statement in an affidavit, filed in response to a PIL challenging the Haj subsidy, is unambiguous and shorn of ifs and buts. It said: "It is very much pertinent to state at this juncture that the government is not averse to the idea of granting support to the pilgrimages conducted by any community." The ministry said the PIL filed by Praful Goradia has challenged Haj Committee Act of 1959, which has been repealed with the enactment of HCA, 2002.
Terming the PIL as politically motivated, MEA stoutly defended Centre's policy to subsidise air-travel of pilgrims to Mecca for the annual Haj. Citing the HCA, 2002, enacted during the NDA regime, the ministry said the policy decision was first taken in the mid-90s and is being continued.
It said expenditure for facilitating and supporting the pilgrimage to religious places is covered under Art 282 of the Constitution and took the stand that the SC itself has held in several judgments that a policy decision cannot be questioned by the court unless it is contrary to the Constitution.
On the plea of the petitioner that granting subsidy to one community violated secularism, which is the basic fabric of the Constitution, the ministry said: "A policy decision to grant subsidy to Haj pilgrims is in no way going to affect the principles of secularism."
On the contrary, such policy decisions stimulate the ideals set out by the Constitution which intends to secularise amongst others the liberty of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship, equality of status and opportunity, it said.
Seeking to seal the case against interference by the court, MEA said the amount of subsidy (which is the difference of air fare) is allocated in the Union budget. Once Parliament passes the Union budget after due consideration of all relevant issues, courts ought not to issue any direction against the subsidy which would be tantamount to deleting budgetary allocations, it said.
dhananjay.mahapatra@timesgroup.com
Labels: Indian politics
posted by Harsh Vardhan @ 10:44 am
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1 Comments:
I suggest some people should form a religion that says that their god demands from the follower to travel to each and every beautiful holiday destination on the face of this earth and ask the govt to subsidise your trips! That'll teach the govt a lesson! How many people are required for a group to be called a religion? You can always convert back to hinduism in a secular country lol!
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