The Delhi High Court has recently overturned the Ministry of Minority Affairs' decisions to blacklist several travel agencies, preventing them from applying for registration as Haj Group Organizers (HGOs) for durations ranging from 5 to 15 years.

Justice Sanjeev Narula observed that the show-cause notices issued to the HGOs before their blacklisting lacked specific details regarding the intended action.

"Therefore, in the absence of specific details of the provisions in the show cause notices about the proposed action of blacklisting or debarment, the Petitioners were denied a fair opportunity to mount a proper defence against such severe punitive measures, including blacklisting/debarment and the forfeiture of their security deposits," the Court said in its September 18 decision.

The Court granted relief to the HGOs but instructed the Centre to issue fresh show-cause notices within a week, clearly outlining the alleged violations of the 2023 Haj Policy and the proposed actions. The HGOs were given one week to respond to the new notices, following which the Centre is directed to make a fresh decision within 10 days. Meanwhile, the Court ruled that the HGOs will remain eligible to apply for Haj 2025.

"Considering that the impugned orders have been set aside, it follows that there is no subsisting order of blacklisting/debarment against the Petitioners. Hence, the Petitioners are eligible to apply for Haj, 2025. Such applications would be scrutinized in accordance with law, however, the allocation of seats to the Petitioners shall proceed only after decisions are rendered on the fresh issued show cause notices. It is understood that these decisions will be made prior to the commencement of the seat allocation process for HGOs," the Court ordered.

HGOs organize pilgrimages for Haj and Umrah to Saudi Arabia. Under the bilateral agreement between the Government of India and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, a fixed number of seats are allocated, allowing HGOs to send pilgrims for Haj.

In May 2023, the petitioner-HGOs were served show-cause notices following complaints alleging cartelization and black-marketing of HGO seats. However, they challenged the notices and received interim relief from the High Court, allowing them to continue their operations for Haj 2023.

Subsequently, based on the show-cause notices, the HGOs were blacklisted for varying durations, starting from Haj 2024. The HGOs contested the blacklisting, arguing that the notices were legally defective, as they failed to explicitly mention that the Centre was considering severe penalties such as debarment, blacklisting, or forfeiture of security deposits.

The Court concurred, ruling that the notices did not meet the necessary legal standards required before imposing such serious penalties.