The first phase of Bishwa Ijtema, the second largest congregation of Muslims after Hajj, began on the banks of the Turag River in Tongi after Fazr prayers on Friday. Since the early morning, thousands of devotees from home and abroad started reaching the riverbanks from all sides in order to take part in the religious event, seeking divine blessings of the Almighty Allah.
The Ijtema began with Aam Bayan, general sermons, by Pakistani Islamic scholar Maulana Obaidul Khorshed. At noon, thousands of devotees offered Juma prayers on the premises of the 55th Ijtema, scattering far away across both banks of the river. Maulana Muhammad Zubair Ahmed, imam of Kakrail Mosque, recited the Khutbah and led the Juma prayer which began at 1.45 pm and ended at 5.52 pm.
The three-day event of the 55th Bishwa Ijtema will end on January 12. The followers of Maulana Jubair Hassan will participate in the first phase of Bishwa Ijtema. The venue has been brought under CCTV surveillance. To ensure security to the devotees, Police, Rab and other law enforcement agencies have taken up extra security measures in and around the Ijtema venue.
Extra security personnel have been deployed besides setting up checkpoints at different areas surrounding the Ijtema venue. Police started controlling movements of people in areas adjacent to the venue from the morning. According to police sources, around 8,500 members of different law enforcement agencies are performing duties to ensure security in and around the Ijtema ground. Like previous years, additional number of police, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) personnel and members of detective branches in plain clothes have been deployed for ensuring security for pilgrims, the sources added.
Ijtema organisers said the programmes of the Ijtema are being held as per the schedule amid a five-tier security measure obtained by the government. The Ijtema field has been divided into 92 sections in a bid to accommodate thousands of devotees from across the globe. Until Friday noon, devotees from all the 64 districts of the country and 40 countries across the globe reached the Ijtema venue.
Tabligh Jamaat has been organising the congregation at the venue since 1967. In 2011, Tabligh split the Ijtema into two phases, dividing the participation of the people of 64 districts, to reduce pressure on the venue and ensure better management. Gazipur City Corporation (GCC) sources said eight control rooms have been set up and 15 gates have been erected at different points of the Ijtema ground. Besides, 14 surveillance towers by police and 10 surveillance towers by Rab have been erected to ensure the security to the Ijtema ground. The second phase of the Ijtema will be held from January 17 to 19 at the same venue.
