On the second day of the second phase of the 57th Bishwa Ijtema the devotees on Saturday listened to scholars' recitations and explanations of verses from the Quran.
Bangladeshi devotees including 7,000 foreign pilgrims from several countries have gathered on the Ijtema ground and continued spiritual activities, including the recitation of Allah’s divine names and sermons.
The second phase of Bishwa Ijtema began on Friday with general sermons after Fajr prayers by Maulana Ilyas Bin Saad of India. The sermon was translated into Bangla by Maulana Munir Bin Yusuf.
Maulana Syed Bin Saad of India delivered sermons after Fajr prayer on Saturday and Maulana Mufti Osama Islam translated it into Bangla.
Besides, Maulana Abdul Azim, Maulana Sharif and Maulana Osman will deliver sermons the whole day respectively.
Devotees from different parts of the country are still coming to the Ijtema venue on the banks of the Turag River by buses, trucks, boats and on foot.
The second phase of Ijtema will end on Sunday with Akheri Munajat (final prayers).
A mass wedding ceremony will be held on Saturday at the ground after Asr prayers.
Meanwhile, more than 6,000 members of law enforcement have been deployed to perform duties in the Ijtema area. Gazipur Metropolitan Police Commissioner Mohammad Mahbub Alam said a strong security system is in place for this phase, as was the case in the first phase.
By Thursday night, a total of six people died during Ijtema. Media coordinator Mohammad Sayem said they died due to old age illness.
Tabligh Jamaat has been organizing the congregation at the venue since 1967. In 2011, it divided Ijtema into two phases to accommodate a large number of attendees.
