The final phase of a three-day Bishwa Ijtema, the largest congregation of Muslims after the Hajj, ended on Sunday on the banks of the Turag River in Gazipur’s Tongi with prayers seeking peace and prosperity for the country and Muslim Ummah.

People from home and abroad started rushing towards the Ijtema ground and adjacent areas on Saturday evening to take part in the ‘Akheri Munajat’ (the final prayers).

Maulana Yusuf bin Saad Kandhalvi, the eldest son of Maulana Saad Kandhalvi of India, conducted the concluding prayer from 12:15 pm to 12:45 pm, which was broadcast live on television and other media.

During the final prayer, the Ijtema ground and nearby areas were full of tens of thousands of devotees. People who couldn't find a place inside Ijtema stayed in nearby buildings or slept on rooftops, corridors, pavements, or in open spaces.

Some laid out newspapers, sacks, prayer mats,

 or polythene sheets on the roads and waited there. They were abuzz with chants of ‘Allahu Akbar’ and raised their hands and asked for forgiveness, self-purification, and protection from all sorts of trouble.

Over 7,000 foreigners from over 60 countries attended the second phase of Ijtema.

The proceedings on the last day of the congregation began with a sermon by India’s Islamic scholar Moulana Mursalin after Fazr prayers. Later, Maulana Yusuf bin Saad Kandhalvi delivered the hedayeti bayan (guiding sermon). Their speeches were translated by Maulana Zia bin Kashim.

Thousands of devotees walked to the Ijtema venue as all kinds of transport were banned from heading to Tongi at midnight on Saturday.

Following the conclusion of the final prayer, many pilgrims set out for new destinations as part of their Tabligh Jamaat group to invite people to the path of Islam and religious values, while others returned home.

Devotees encountered a difficult situation as traffic was suspended from Airport Road in the capital to Joydevpur Chowrasta, Mirer Bazar of Gazipur Sadar upazila to Tongi, and Abdullahpur to the Bypass Road.

Very few transports operated in proportion to the huge crowd leaving the Ijtema premises for their destinations outside Tongi, leading to immense suffering for the devotees. They were left walking towards their destined locations.

Transport workers took advantage of the situation and charged exorbitant fares to devotees.

The metro rail ran from 8:00am to 5:00pm on the day to facilitate the smooth movement of the devotees.

Besides, Bangladesh Railway arranged a special rail service, engaging five pairs of special trains to carry passengers to and from Tongi on the occasion. And every intercity train crossing Tongi Railway Station stopped there for five minutes.

The first phase took place at the same venue on January 13–15 and was attended by Tabligh group leader Zubair Hassan’s followers.

Tabligh Jamaat has been organising the Bishwa Ijtema at this venue since 1967, though the gathering was first held in 1946 at Kakrail mosque in Dhaka.