Hajj is the biggest Muslim congregation in the world; but it seems that everyone goes to Mecca to perform hajj as a mandatory Islamic ritual. At the Biswa Ijtema in Tongi of Bangladesh, people come willingly to learn about Islam and send invitation to others to follow its path.
“We visit this place after travelling hundreds of miles from our country only to learn Islam,” said Kalimullah, 40, a pharmacist from Saudi Arabia.
Asked how long he will stay in Bangladesh, Kalimullah said he had come to complete his learning Islam, and that he would not leave the country until he found almighty Allah through his prayers.
Mohammad Yeasin, 35, who is a primary school teacher in Palestine, said he had come to exchange the knowledge of Islam with the fellow devotees.
Ijtema of Tabligh Jamaat is considered as the second largest Muslim congregation after the hajj.
The Dhaka Tribune spoke to a retired government official from the Philippines, Khalilullah, 60, on the Ijtema ground. He came to Bangladesh to learn the way of sending invitation of Islam.
Working with a Tabligh Jamaat team since he came to Dhaka on January 26, Khalilullah said he would not return home until he was satisfied with his learning.
Another foreigner Sahideen, 45, who is a businessperson in Malaysia, told the Dhaka Tribune that he came with a group supported by the organisers from Bangladesh Tabligh Jamaat. He plans to leave the country after getting their instruction on how to invite people to Islam. He also joined the last four congregations.
Abu Ubaida, 21, a youth of Kirgizstan, says he came to Bangladesh two years ago and stayed at the Kakrail mosque. He mentioned that he wanted to spend his life by serving Islam.
Al Teen, 22, came from Tajikistan, says he came to Bangladesh a couple of months ago.
According to members of law enforcement agencies, presence of foreigners is not too much during the second phase of Ijtema compared to the first phase. Around 10,000 foreign devotes are attending the second phase while 25,000 foreigners from 120 countries including Pakistan, India, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Indonesia and Palestine participated in the first phase.