Money from illegal Hajis’ transportation ‘ill gotten’

JEDDAH: The money earned from transporting pilgrims who do not have permits is unlawful, a senior scholar has said.
“Such money is gained illegally by committing a violation,” Sheikh Ali Al-Hakami, a member of the Council of Senior Scholars, said in a newspaper interview. “Anyone who violates the regulations and gets paid for this, his money is definitely ill gotten.”
Al-Hakami pointed out that permits for performing Haj is in the interest of the Muslims, and that pilgrimage is not obligatory for any person who cannot get an official permit for Haj.
“Violators badly affect the organization of Haj and harm other pilgrims,” he said.
“Any person desiring to perform Haj, but incapable of doing so because he/she does not have a permit, will get rewarded by Allah for not bringing harm to other Muslims,” he explained.
Meanwhile, the operational plan to safely transport 1.3 million pilgrims between Makkah and the holy sites has been put in place.
The pilgrims will be transported by more than 16,000 buses, said an official, adding that the plan details the movement of buses on the roads linking Makkah, Madinah and Jeddah to the holy sites.