Hajj service provider sued for Rs1m

Complainant says was promised “VIP facilities” at hotels during his stay in Saudi Arabia.

LAHORE: A consumer court on Monday issued notice to Al-Arifa Private Ltd, which provides services for Hajj and Umra, for March 11 in a suit seeking Rs1 million in damages from the company.

Complainant Munir Ahmed submitted that Ahmed Jalil Raja, the company’s managing director, had met with him at the company office on Lawrence Road and promised to provide him “VIP facilities” at hotels during his stay in Saudi Arabia.

The complainant said that he was promised a separate bathroom, food at Mina and an air-conditioned tent at Arafat. He said that he had given Jalil a cheque for Rs495,000 on August 12.

He said that in Jeddah, he was put up at a rundown hotel that was without furniture and had no bathroom or kitchen. He said that he was provided poor quality food and not given a guide.

No one was available at the Al-Arifa Company to answer queries about the case.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 22^nd, 2011.