Archive · 18 Sep 2025
Hajj Subsidies: UPA vs. NDA Spending Revealed by RTI
An activist used the Right to Information (RTI) Act to find out how much money the government spent on helping Muslims go to Hajj, a religious trip.
The RTI showed that the government under the UPA spent a lot more money on these trips compared to the Modi-led NDA government.
The subsidies were completely stopped in 2018.
The activist argues that this reveals unfair treatment towards the majority population.
An RTI revealed details on Hajj subsidies paid by Indian governments.
The UPA government spent ₹6,560 crore on Hajj subsidies from 2004-2014.
The NDA government spent ₹1,137 crore on Hajj subsidies from 2014-2017.
Hajj subsidies were abolished in 2018.
The total public money spent on Hajj subsidies before abolition was ₹7,697 crore.
- Who
- Pune-based businessman and activist Prafful P Sarda
- What
- An RTI revealed how public money was spent on Hajj subsidies.
- When
- The RTI was filed on April 11, 2025. The data covers periods from 2004-2017.
- Where
- N/A
- Why
- To reveal how much public money was used for Hajj subsidies by different governments.
N/A
Activist's View
Fairness of Subsidies
N/A
N/A
Activist's View
The activist believes the government's spending unfairly favors a specific group, calling for equal treatment across religions.
- RTI Filing Date
- April 11, 2025
- Filing Party
- Prafful P Sarda
- UPA Hajj Subsidy (2004-2014)
- ₹6,560 crore
- UPA Annual Average
- ₹656 crore
- NDA Hajj Subsidy (2014-2017)
- ₹1,137 crore
- NDA Annual Average
- ₹379 crore
- Hajj Subsidy Abolished
- 2018
- Total Spent Before Abolition
- ₹7,697 crore