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New Delhi: The Supreme Court has issued notice to the Centre on a petition challenging the constitutional validity of the Haj Committee Act, 1959 providing for annual financial assistance by the Government to Muslims for pilgrimage.

Prafull Goradia, former BJP Rajya Sabha member, alleged that spending an estimated Rs. 280 crore annually for funding the Haj pilgrimage was not only unconstitutional but was also a drain on the taxpayers' money.

A Bench consisting of Justices H.K. Sema and R.V. Raveendran directed that this petition be tagged with a special leave petition pending on this issue.

Mr. Goradia said theCentral and State Governments were allotting a substantial amount for the Haj Fund created under the Haj Act specifically to defray the expenses incurred by Muslims to undertake pilgrimage to their holy lands abroad, whereas there was no such legal provision to meet the expenses of Hindu, Christian, Buddhist and Sikh pilgrims. This exclusion was violative of the Constitution, as the state could not discriminate among the citizens on grounds of religion, caste or creed. The Haj Act was not a secular enactment and hence was opposed to the `Basic Structure' of the Constitution, the petitioner said.

In a secular country, the Government could not promote a particular religion at the cost of others or spend the amount collected by way of taxes for one religious community. The petition sought a direction to quash the Haj Act and to refund the portion of taxes, collected from the petitioner, which had been utilised for maintaining and facilitating Haj pilgrimage.

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