Devotees seek divine blessings at Akheri Munajat

Staff Correspondent, Gazipur: Lakhs of Muslims sought world peace and divine blessings for mankind and the Muslim Ummah as the second phase of Biswa Ijtema concluded on Tuesday through the final supplication- Akheri Munajat.

Noted Islamic Scholar Maulana Mohammad Shamim led the 20-minute munajat at the Ijtema, the second largest congregation of the Muslims after the Hajj, on the bank of river Turag at Tongi.

The Akheri Munajat began at 11.48am and ended at 12.08pm.

Hundreds of thousands of devotees from home and abroad joined the Akheri Munajat to pray for world peace, spiritual progress, exaltation and welfare of the Muslim community.

Earlier, Indian Islamic preacher Maulana Muhammad Saad Al Kandhalvi followers began their Hedayeti bayan. Indian Islamic scholar Md Iqbal Hafiz administered the A’m bayan while Bangladeshi maulana Syad Osama Islam translated it in Bangla.

The first phase of Bishwa Ijtema ended on Saturday.

On January 24, the government announced the schedule of Ijtema following a meeting with two factions of Tabligh Jamaat.

On December 1, the two factions of Tabligh Jamaat were locked into infighting on the Ijtema ground in Tongi that resulted in deferring the Ijtema from January 11 to February 15.

Tabligh Jamaat has been organising the Ijtema at the venue since 1967 while the Ijtema is being held in Bangladesh every year from 1946.

However, the Ijtema is being held in two phases since 2011 to ease the accommodation problem.

Besides, foolproof security measures were taken to hold the five-day Biswa Ijtema in a peaceful manner. Five control rooms, including Gazipur City Corporation, district administration, police, RAB and Ansar and VDP, were set up to monitor the overall activities of the Tongi Ijtema.

According to the sources, 15 watch towers of police and 10 of RAB were set up to ensure over all security of the devotees.

Around 3.54 lakh gallons of fresh water was supplied everyday through 13 deep tube-wells and 50 trucks were engaged round the clock in removing garbage from the Ijtema ground.

A total of 175 gas burner stoves were set up to provide cooking facilities for foreign devotees at the Ijtema compound and healthcare centres were set up at different parts of the venue along with first aid and other treatment facilities to provide health care services to the devotees.

Bangladesh Railway (BR) launched special train services on several destinations for the devotees participating in the congregation.


risingbd/Gazipur/Feb 19, 2019/Hasmot Ali/Mukul