MALAPPURAM: T.K. Hamza, MP from Manjeri, on Friday lashed out at Union Minister of State for External Affairs E. Ahamed for taking "unilateral" decisions with regard to the country's Haj affairs.

Addressing a news conference here, Mr. Hamza said the Union Minister had made a mockery of the Central Haj Committee by taking unilateral decisions and indulging in favouritism.

"We have nothing against the Central Haj Committee. In fact, Mr. Ahamed was acting autocratically by bypassing even the chairman of the Central Haj Committee," Mr. Hamza said. He said Mr. Ahamed had thrown to the winds the Haj panel guidelines by permitting 600 people under special quota.

He challenged the Union Minister to clarify the criterion for the special quota, even as 4,000-odd pilgrims were in the waiting list.

Mr. Hamza held the Union Minister responsible for mismanaging the Haj quota additionally sanctioned by the Government. While 6,000 additional seats were given to Kashmiris, the remaining 4,000 seats were shared among private Haj operators, he said.

"How can you give subsidised quota to private Haj operators, especially when there is a demand to blacklist about 30 per cent of the private Haj operators," Mr. Hamza asked.

Mr. Hamza said that he would submit a memorandum to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to publish the list of 2,000 Government delegates taken to Mecca by the Haj Committee.

Mr. Hamza said he had desisted from raising the matter in Parliament fearing that the Opposition, which clamours for lifting of the Haj subsidy, would capitalise on it.

He also said it was the first time that a couple of newspersons were being taken for Haj by the Central Haj Committee. He accused Mr. Ahamed of favouritism for allowing newspersons of his choice to travel to Mecca freely. "This is not only favouritism, but also a means to create discord among journalists," he said.

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