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Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) police arrested a cop involved in facilitating the suicide bomber behind the blast at the police line mosque in Peshawar last year.

Inspector General (IG) of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Akhtar Hayat Gandapur, speaking at a press conference on Tuesday in Peshawar, revealed that a policeman named Mohammad Wali was arrested a few days ago from Jamil Chowk, and two suicide jackets were recovered from him.

“It was revealed during the investigation that the suspect belonged to the police department,” KP IGP said.

The incident took place on January 2023 at the Central Hall mosque, located in the Police Line area, leading to over 100 casualties.

The suicide attacker was reportedly present in the first row of the prayer during Zuhur time when he exploded himself.

The Fitna al Khawarij (formerly Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan) had taken the blast responsibility in 2023.

IG Khyber Pakhtunkhwa stated that following Mohammad Wali’s contact with the Jamaat-ul-Ahrar (JuA) in 2021, he travelled to Afghanistan, where he met with terrorists, including Mohammad Khurasani, spokesperson of JuA.

Moreover, IGP unveiled that Wali transported the suicide bomber on January 20, 2023, identified as Qari, an Afghan national, from Charsadda Mosque to the Police Line mosque for reconnaissance.

Wali took the bomber on a motorcycle to Rahman Baba Cemetery, where the bomber was given a police uniform and a suicide vest. Wali then left “suicide attacker near the Police Line,” IGP added.

Additionally, Akhtar Hayat Gandapur claimed: “Mohammad Wali did this in exchange for Rs 2 lac, received via hawala-hundi at Chowk Yadgar,” further noting that the suspect was also involved in the Warsak Road bomb blast.

A video was shown in which Wali confessed to his horrific crimes during a press conference.

He stated that after his arrest by Afghan forces, a Jamaat-ul-Ahrar member, Junaid, helped secure his release.

He further confessed that he contacted the JuA’s member Junaid through social media in 2021, noting, “I personally expressed my intent to join Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, support it, and work for it.”

Mohammad Wali maintained that he joined the police department on December 31, 2019.

He, however, mentioned that following the suicide blast at the police line, he was then posted to the BRT.

The federal government has announced the Hajj Policy for 2025, which permits pilgrims to pay their Hajj fee in instalments.

The authorities have stated that a total of 179,210 pilgrims from Pakistan will perform Hajj in the coming year.

Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony Chaudhry Salik Hussain shared the Hajj Policy 2025 in a presser on Monday.

While millions of Muslims from around the world come to Saudi Arabia for the annual religious congregation, Pakistan notably receives one of the highest Hajj quotas from Saudi Arabia.

Hajj quota

The minister informed the media that the “Hajj quota has been divided with a ratio of 50-50 between the government and private Haj schemes”, with 89,605 seats each reserved for the state and the private Hajj schemes, respectively.

However, 5,000 seats will be kept for sponsorship under the government Hajj scheme and 
30,000 seats will be reserved for sponsorship by private Hajj tour operators.

Additionally, foreign exchange must be sent through a banking channel to participate in the sponsorship scheme.

Unlike in previous years, the government clarified that the sponsorship scheme will operate on a ‘first come, first served’ basis and will be exempt from balloting.

The minister also mentioned that the government will use foreign exchange collected through the sponsorship scheme exclusively for Hajj-related expenses in Saudi Arabia.

Details of stay in Saudi Arabia

The Government Hajj Scheme includes the traditional long stay of 38 to 42 days.

Meanwhile, the short stay will be for 20 to 25 days.

Religious Affairs Minister also asserted that each organised private Hajj group must consist of at least 2,000 pilgrims in compliance with Saudi rules.

Cost of Hajj

As per Hajj Policy 2025, the cost of Hajj is expected to range between Rs1,075,000 to Rs1,175,000, while the additional cost for the Qurbani as part of the mandatory ritual of Hajj will be Rs55,000.

The minister has revealed that all the applicants choosing double-bed and triple-bed accommodation in Makkah will have to deposit an additional amount of Rs 75,000 and 220,000, respectively.

Instalments

The government has also introduced an instalment policy for paying Hajj dues.

Rs200,000 must be deposited along with the Hajj application under the Government Hajj Scheme as the first instalment.

The second instalment of Rs400,000 must be deposited within 10 days of balloting. 

The remaining amount, however, as part of the third and last instalment, must be deposited by February 10.

The minister noted that there would be a deduction of Rs50,000 on a refund of the first instalment and a deduction of Rs200,000 if the third instalment is not deposited after the balloting, but there would be no deduction for refunds if an application is withdrawn before the last date of submission. 

No refund policy will apply after February 10. 

In case of the applicant’s death, the deductions will not be applied.

The process of receiving applications for the upcoming Hajj will begin from November 18 to December 3, while balloting will be held on December 6.