Tour operator claims it's all a conspiracy hatched by professional rivals, police say the firm may have a point
Tour operator claims it's all a conspiracy hatched by professional rivals, police say the firm may have a pointA Rs 1.5 crore cheating case has been registered against the owner of a tours and travels firm for duping over a hundred Hajjis. But the travel firm that the pilgrims allegedly lost their money to, MIR Muslim Tours and Travels, is saying the whole thing is a conspiracy hatched by its competitors out of professional jealousy.
The police believe there might be some truth in the travel agency's claim, and said they were looking at both sides of the story. Inspector Tanveer Ahmed of the J C Nagar police station said, "It may not be a out-and-out fraud case; the accused in all likelihood simply couldn't succeed in getting the visas. We are watching how things unfold and will take necessary steps."
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NO GO: The office of MIR Tours and Travels |
'Left in the lurch'Planning to go on the pilgrimage Muslims are supposed to undertake at least once in their life, 103 people who had paid for the Haj journey to Saudi Arabia not only lost their money but also their passports to the tour firm, according to the police complaint.
With the flight to Saudi Arabia they were told they would be put on now just a few days away, the complaint said the cheated pilgrims would be unable to fulfil their dream this year as they did not have their passports in possession.
Dr Roxana Noorie, a resident of JP Nagar who works in Pondicherry, is a complainant in the case. According to her, she and her relatives Dr Bibi Khaton and Munaf, a businessman from Tilak Nagar, paid Rs 4.5 lakh towards the trip charges to MIR Muslim Tours and Travels, which has its office on Nandidurg Road.
According to Noorie, Dr Mir Tabreez Ahmed, managing director of the travel agency, had advertised in newspapers claiming MIR provided the best services for Haj.
She said Ahmed claimed his travel agency was Asia's number one Haj, Umra and Ziyarath provider, while declaring that 'to serve the Hajjis with utmost perfection' was his motto.
Hundreds of Hajjis paid up to Rs 1.8 lakh per head, but Noorie said Ahmed failed to provide the visa and air tickets in time.
She said he had told them the flight would be on November 29, but around 103 Hajjis have still not got their papers.
Looking for the MD
When Noorie enquired about the visas, Dr Ahmed assured her that the papers would reach her on time.
"I suspected something fishy and decided to approach another travel agency, as many of my friends who had gone to other agencies had received their travel papers," Noorie told the police. "But Dr Ahmed assured us that we would get our papers soon and did not return our passports."
She said Ahmed later started avoiding all queries, with his staff also not responding to questions. She said later she learnt the MD of MIR Tours and Travels had moved to Mumbai.
"He has cheated us by depriving us our pilgrimage to Mecca and is neither returning our money nor giving us our passport back. He has cheated more than 100 people and is planning to fly to the USA with his family," Noorie said in her complaint.
The Other SideReceptionist Mahmmad Khayyum at MIR Muslim Tours and Travels said, "We didn't cheat, we tried for visas for all but failed. It is all purely out of professional jealousy of other tour operators, like Sayyadana Tours and Travels and two more agencies who paid big money to stop us from getting the visas. Our MD will be back soon and return all the money and the passports."
