Draft bill sent to law ministry regarding Ruet-e-Hilal Committee

ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony has sent a draft bill to the law ministry for declaring the legal status of the country’s Ruet-e-Hilal (moon sighting) Committee, ARY News reported on Friday.

A draft bill related to the country’s moon-sighting committee established in light of a resolution of the National Assembly (NA) in 1974 was sent to the Ministry of Law and Justice by the religious affairs’ ministry.

It is decided that the new regulations will define the tenure of Ruet-e-Hilal Committee’s (RHC) chairman and procedures for its appointment. It is also recommended for defining a tenure period for RHC’s chairman.

Sources said that the body will be declared as the state-authorised moon-sighting committee while strict penalties will be imposed on other non-governmental bodies over making announcements for crescent sightings.

The new legislation will also block ways for moon sighting announcements by any other ministry in the country. Over making self-announcement for moon sighting, the violators can face five-year jail or Rs50,000 to Rs200,000 fines.