The second and last phase of Biswa Ijtema, the largest gathering of Muslim devotees after Hajj, will come to an end today with the Akheri Munajat.
The special prayer which is expected to be around 11am will be led by senior scholar of Tablighi Jamaat Indian Moulana Saa’d, said Gias Uddin, an organizer of the Ijtema.
“Devotees are still pouring in to join the final prayer and we are ready to hold it successfully,” he added.
Just like the first phase, Gazipur Bhogra By-pass to Dhaka Mymensingh main road, Ashulia-Baipail to Kamarpara, and Station road to Mirer Bazar will be closed for any vehicular movement due to the Akheri Munajat, said Shakawat Hossain, assistant police super of Gazipur Traffic Police.
Yesterday after Fazr prayer, the second phase of Biswa Ijtema began its second day with a mass sermon by Indian Moulana Shawkat Ali followed by the Bangla translation by a Bangladeshi Moulana.
Earlier on yesterday, a sudden heavy downpour caused a lot of sufferings to the devotees on the Ijtema ground.
The half an hour rain that began at around 4am not only added to the coldness of the season but also left some parts of the Ijtema ground water-clogged.
In the morning at 10am it started drizzling again and continued intermittently until the afternoon.
Belongings of some of the devotees got drenched in rainy water.
Abul Kalam, a devotee from Kurigram, said: “There was no polythene or shed above our heads and as a result, our beds and belongings got drenched. But now it’s okay.”
Another devotee Safi Uddin from Manikganj had the same complaints but he also added that there was less dust due to the rain.
As part of the Ijtema ritual, at least 135 couples committed to marriage without dowry after Asr prayer yesterday.
According to the organizers, three more devotees died yesterday due to health complications.
They are identified as Ali Azim Haoladar, 65, from Barisal district, Azom Khan, 55, from Nilphamari and Bashir Mia from Moulvibazar.
With these new deaths, the total number of death in the second phase of Ijtema now stands at seven.
