The Punjab government sought its response during the hearing on a PIL challenging the Chief Minister's pilgrimage scheme. The government told the High Court that apart from Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, many other states are also running such schemes.

Punjab government has kept only Rs 40 crore for this. On this, the High Court said that how the money of common people is being invested in such a scheme, this amount can be used for other purposes.

The court said that ''the condition of jails in the state is bad, why is no scheme brought there. The future generation needs education and employment, why is money not spent on that? On this, the government said that we will try to create a balance. The government said, one train has gone on the journey but the tickets of the other have been booked. After some debate, the High Court adjourned the hearing for two weeks without giving any instructions.''

The bench of Acting Chief Justice Ritu Bahri and Justice Nidhi Gupta of the High Court issued this order on the PIL filed. On the last hearing, the High Court had also asked the Punjab Government why it should not ban this scheme. In this case, Hoshiarpur resident Parvinder Singh Kitna, through his lawyer HC Arora, challenged the Chief Minister Teerth Yatra Scheme launched by the Punjab State Government on November 27, 2023.

The scheme involves running 13 trains over a period of 13 weeks during the current financial year and carrying 1000 pilgrims in each train. Apart from this, there are 10 buses daily from various places in the state of Punjab to various destinations and each bus carries 43 passengers. Rs 40 crore for a period of 13 weeks during the current financial year. This scheme involves an expenditure of Rs.

A total of 50,000 people are to be benefited from the scheme during the current financial year. The petitioner had challenged the above scheme on the grounds that it was a huge waste of taxpayers' money and would not lead to any development or welfare.

Rather, the Scheme is against the very spirit of the directions issued by the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India in the judgment titled Union of India and Others vs. Rafiq Shaikh Bhi and Others. In which, while hearing the expenditure incurred in giving subsidy for Haj pilgrimage to various persons of Muslim community in 2022, the Supreme Court directed the Central Government to reduce the Haj subsidy and completely eliminate it within a period of 10 years. 

The Supreme Court had also said that the subsidy money could be more profitably used for education and social development and other upliftment. The division bench also directed the state government to justify the free pilgrimage scheme at state expense when the youth in the state are fighting for jobs and employment.

The High Court Bench has also directed the State Government to explain why this pilgrimage scheme has been restarted, whereas a similar scheme launched by the State of Punjab in the year 2017 has been re-launched by the State Government under the notice of the High Court.