The Government of Telangana has decided conduct the last rites of four pilgrims who went on Haj through the State Haj Committee and were killed in an accident at Mecca a couple of days ago, at Mecca itself as per the wishes of the family members and relatives of the deceased.
Based on the request of the kin of the deceased Haj pilgrims, the State Government asked the Consulate General of India at Jeddah to conduct their funeral at Mecca. Special Secretary (Minorities Welfare) Syed Omer Jaleel and State Haj Committee Special Officer S.A. Shukoor were in constant touch with Indian Consulate General B.S. Mubarak at Jeddah, according to an official statement.
A helpline with telephone number 040-23214125 was set up here immediately after the accident news reached here. The government has confirmed that four pilgrims who went on Haj through the State Committee – Mohd. Abdul Khadar (38) and his wife Fatimabi (32) of Machilipatnam and Shamim Banu and Khadarbi died in accident. The last two victims hail from Sirguppa in Ballari district of Karnataka.
Two other pilgrims from Bazarghat in Nampally here, Mohd. Hamid Khan and his wife Anees, injured in the accident were already discharged from a hospital at Mecca after treatment. Sheik Mohd. Mujeeb, another injured Haj pilgrim from Bhavaninagar here was still under treatment in a hospital there, officials stated.
Officials stated that the relatives of the Hajis were being updated with information received from Mecca from time to time. They said the relatives of the deceased preferred their funeral in Mecca, the abode of Allah, when they were consulted on bringing back the bodies or conducting the last rites there itself. The Telangana Government had sent 18 Khadim-ul-Hujjajs to Mecca along with 5,452 pilgrims to help them and they were helping the pilgrims and sending the information back home constantly, the statement said.
