Al Abrar group begins refunding 110 umrah pilgrims affected by lastminute cancellation as police opens probe

Local travel group Al Abrar has begun refunding over 100 pilgrims who were affected by the lastminute cancellation of their umrah trip on Tuesday, as the authorities investigate the case for possible fraud.

According to one of the affected pilgrims, they had paid MVR 45,000 three months in advance to embark on umrah pilgrimage the last 15 days of Ramadan.

Total 110 pilgrims were scheduled to take a flight to Saudi Arabia on Tuesday evening. The pilgrims were initially instructed to bring their luggage to the airport between 10:00 am and 11:00 am, but were later asked to bring them again closer to departure time.

They were then summoned for an emergency meeting at 2:00 pm, and told that the trip had been cancelled.

 Organizers reportedly cited the ongoing conflict in the Middle East as the reason for the cancellation.

Some of the affected pilgrims gathered outside the group’s office in Male’ on Tuesday night to protest the lastminute cancellation and demand a refund.

A young man who paid to send his parents on umrah told Sun that the group began refunding the pilgrims on Tuesday night. According to the source, the group has refunded the money after deducting the MVR 15,000 flight ticket cost, but assures the pilgrims that they will also refund the ticket cost soon.

“But it’s sad that even if we get our money back, the trip is cancelled. The umrah pilgrimage is what’s important in this, right? It’s regrettable that they won’t be able to, even if they get the money back,” he said.

 While Al Abrar cancelled its umrah trip citing the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, other travel groups continue to take pilgrims to Saudi Arabia.

The lastminute cancellation by Al Abrar is under investigation by both the Islamic Ministry and the police.