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Haj goodwill team to Saudi not needed, says Indian Supreme Court

April 17, 2012
Haj

New Delhi, April 17: The Supreme Court on Monday favoured doing away with the practice of sending goodwill delegation to Saudi Arabia during the Haj in a phased manner, saying that the move started in 1967 was no more required in the present scenario.

A bench of justices Aftab Alam and Justice Ranjana Prakash Desa said that the goodwill delegation was required after partition to counter Pakistan and to maintain better relations with the government in Saudi Arabia.

“All that must come to end. You (government) must stop it in 4 or 5 years by reducing the number of people. It was all started in 1967.”

“There is no need to send goodwill delegation,” Justice Alam, speaking for the bench, said.

The court’s response came after Attorney-General G E Vahanvati read out the affidavit filed by the Central government, detailing the draft policy of annual Haj pilgrimage to holy towns of Mecca and Madina for the current year.

The government’s top law officer submitted that the primary purpose of the delegation on government expenditure was to convey goodwill to the government of Saudi Arabia as well as to Indian pilgrims.

“The delegation interacts with the Haj pilgrims from India, understands their issues and takes up the same with the Saudi Arabian authorities. The delegation addresses these issues in their meeting with the minister of Haj, Saudi Arabia and governor of Mecca,” Vahanvati said.

According to the government’s affidavit, the number of delegates was 25 in year 2007, 34 in 2008, 26 in 2009, 30 in 2010 and 27 last year.

The court was hearing a special leave petition filed by the Centre challenging the Bombay High Court’s order which directed it to give allotment of Haj pilgrims to certain Private Tour Operators (PTOs) from government quota in 2011. ?

In conformity with a bilateral agreement signed between India and Saudi Arabia in March this year, a total of 1.70 lakh Muslim pilgrims would be allowed from all over the country.

Of which, 1.25 lakh would be able to visit Saudi Arabia through statutory body Haj Committee of India, Mumbai (HCOI) and remaining 45,000 through private tour operators (PTOs).

The bench fixed April 30 as the next date of hearing in the matter.


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Agencies
August 2,2020

Kuwait, Aug 2: Kuwait has barred entry of foreign passengers from over 30 countries including India and China.

A circular from the Director General Civil Aviation, State of Kuwait directed all airlines operating at Kuwait International Airport to adhere to the instructions in this regard.

"Based on the decision of the Health Authority in State of Kuwait, no foreign passenger coming from the down listed countries will be allowed to enter the State of Kuwait," the circular read.

These include- India, Iran, China, Brazil, Colombia, Armenia, Bangladesh, Philippines, Syria, Spain, Singapore, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Iraq, Mexico, Indonesia, Chile, Pakistan, Egypt, Lebanon, Hong Kong, Italy, North Macedonia, Moldova, Panama, Beirut ,Serbia Montenegro, Dominican Republic and Kosovo.

The circular stated that such restriction will also include the passengers were present 14 days before the date of travel until further notice.

The ban was announced the same day Kuwait began a partial resumption of commercial flights according to Khaleej Times, which quoted authorities stating that Kuwait International Airport would run at about 30 per cent capacity from Saturday, gradually increasing in coming months.

According to the latest data from Johns Hopkins University, Kuwait has reported 67,448 cases of coronavirus while the fatalities related to the virus stand at 453.

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Agencies
July 19,2020

Kuwait City, Jul 19: Kuwaiti ruler Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah has successfully undergone surgery early on Sunday, the emir's office said.

"His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah ... has undergone surgery this morning, with thanks to God for its success," the head of the emir's office Sheikh Ali Jarrah al-Sabah said, as quoted by state news agency KUNA.

The 91-year-old was admitted to hospital for a medical checkup.

Yesterday, a royal order was issued assigning Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmed al-Sabah, the emir's designated successor, "to take over some constitutional jurisdictions of His Highness the Emir temporarily"

In August 2019, Kuwait acknowledged the emir suffered an unspecified medical "setback" that required him to be hospitalised.

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Agencies
April 27,2020

Riyadh, Apr 27: A Saudi Arabia-led coalition said on Monday that all parties need to return to the status that existed before the Southern Transitional Council (STC) in Yemen declared an emergency in Aden, according to a statement published by Spa.

The Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen, led by Saudi Arabia and the UAE, stresses the need to restore conditions to their previous state following the announcement of a state of emergency by the Southern Transitional Council and the consequential development of affairs in the interim capital (Aden) and some Southern governorates in the Republic of Yemen.

The Coalition urges for an immediate end to any steps contrary to the Riyadh Agreement, and work rapidly toward its implementation, citing the wide support for the agreement by the international community and the United Nations.

The Coalition has and will continue to undertake practical and systematic steps to implement the Riyadh Agreement between the parties to unite Yemeni ranks, restore state institutions and combat the scourge of terrorism. The responsibility rests with the signatories to the Agreement to undertake national steps toward implementing its provisions, which were signed and agreed upon with a time matrix for implementation. The Coalition demands an end to any escalation and calls for return to the Agreement by the participating parties, stressing the immediate need for implementation without delay, and the need to prioritise the Yemeni peoples' interests above all else, as well as working to achieve the stated goals of restoring the state, ending the coup and combatting terrorist organizations.

The Coalition reaffirms its ongoing support to the legitimate Yemeni government, and its support for implementing the Riyadh Agreement, which entails forming a competent government that operate from the interim capital Aden to tackle economic and developmental challenges, in light of natural disasters such as floods, fears of the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic outbreak, and work to provide services to the brotherly people of Yemen.

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