Biswa Ijtema Ends: Lakhs join concluding prayer
Tens of thousands of Muslims raised their hands seeking forgiveness and blessings for mankind as the first phase of Biswa Ijtema on the Turag banks yesterday concluded with the final supplication -- Akheri Munajat.
Noted Islamic scholar Maulana Muhammad Saad from India led the 35-minute munajat at the Ijtema, the biggest annual Islamic event after the Hajj.
The gathering of devotees of all ages spilled onto the adjacent roads during the munajat that began at 11:00am and continued until 11:35am. A pin-drop silence prevailed in the virtual sea of humanity with the prayers offered through loudspeakers.
Many people joined the prayers from rooftops of vehicles and buildings, from open fields and from nearby houses and roads.
Devotees who could not reach the venue joined the prayers through cell phones and electronic media.
The second phase of Ijtema will begin on January 20 and end with the Akheri Munajat on January 22.
Religious scholars from home and abroad also delivered sermons on Islamic philosophy in light of the holy Quran and Hadith.
Security was beefed up ahead of the Akheri Munajat. Around 6,000 uniformed and plainclothes police and members of Rab and intelligence agencies were deployed in and around the Ijtema ground to ensure devotees' security.
All the factories in Gazipur and Tongi were closed during the Akheri Munajat so that their workers could attend the prayers.
To participate in the concluding prayers, thousands of devotees from 17 districts, including a part of the capital, thronged the riverbank, apparently turning the venue into a human sea since morning.
Trains and buses were overcrowded with devotees. Many came to the venue by train and bus, risking their lives, while many, including women, walked miles to reach the venue.
Vehicular movement was suspended between Bhogra Bypass and Tongi bridge on Dhaka-Mymensingh highway, Majukhan bridge and Station Road on Kaliganj-Tongi road, and Kamarpara bridge to Monno Textile Mills on Kamarpara road from early yesterday.
Gazipur district administration operated shuttle buses to carry the devotees to and from the Ijtema ground.
"I have come to the Ijtema venue at 10:00am on foot from near the Radisson Hotel in the capital," said Azadul Haque, a resident of Mirpur-12.
Around 7,804 foreign devotees from 91 countries, including India, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq and Egypt, also attended the first phase of the Ijtema, said Mominul Islam, inspector of Special Branch of Police in Gazipur.
President Abdul Hamid join the prayers from their respective official residences Bangabhaban and Gono Bhaban. Photo: Palash Khan, PMO and PID
PRESENCE OF VIPS
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina took part in the prayers with her family members and relatives from the Gono Bhaban, while BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia joined the final prayers from her Gulshan house.
Apart from Hasina and Khaleda, ministers, state ministers and political leaders also joined the Akheri Munajat.
DEVOTEES DIE
Seven devotees died during the first phase of Ijtema.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina join the prayers from their respective official residences Bangabhaban and Gono Bhaban. Photo: Palash Khan, PMO and PID
MOBILE COURT
Rahenul Islam, additional district magistrate of Gazipur, said five executive magistrates led mobile court drives in two shifts at the Ijtema ground and its adjacent areas.
The courts filed 12 cases and fined different restaurants Tk 47,500 during the drives.
FREE FOOD AND WATER
As hundreds of thousands of devotees walked miles to join the Akheri Munajat and return from the Ijtema venue, different organisations and individuals distributed juice, water and dry food among the devotees at different points on their way to home.