The Ijtema started with sermons by Maulana Abdur Rahman, who as come from India, after the Fazr prayers on Friday morning.

Bangladesh’s Maulana Abdul Matin interpreted the sermons in Bangla.

Hundreds of thousands of Muslims began thronging the bank of the Turag River, on the outskirts of capital Dhaka, from Thursday.

Muslims from home and abroad are attending the second phase of the three-day religious event, which will end with the Akheri Munajat (final prayers) on Sunday.

Bangladesh’s Qari Mohammad Jubayer will conduct the Juma prayers at the Ijtema grounds on Friday, said Md Gias Uddin, member of the Ijtema Management Committee.

He said Shura (council) members of Tabligh Jamaat Markaz (headquarters) from Bangladesh, India and Pakistan would address the Ijtema.

The sermons will be recited in Urdu, but they will be interpreted in different languages including Bangla, English, Arabic, Tamil, Malay, Turkish and Farsi.

Since 2011, Bishwa Ijtema has been held in two phases until now to ease the accommodation problem.

But the organisers have planned a four-phase Ijtema from this year that will be spread over two years to enable Muslims from the country’s 64 districts to take part.

Muslims from 17 districts attended the first phase, which started on Jan 8 and ended on Jan 10.

People from 16 other districts (Dhaka included in both) are currently attending the second phase of the Ijtema, Gias Uddin said.

Devotees from the other 32 districts will take part in the two-phase Ijtema next year.

Traffic measures

As many as 1,500 traffic police personnel have been deployed at and around the Ijtema venue and adjacent areas to ensure a free flow of vehicles, said Md Shakhawat Hossain, Senior ASP (Traffic), Gazipur.

He also added that 60 CCTV cameras had been installed to ensure better safety of the devotees.

Traffic on the road from Dhour Bridge to Pragati Sarani and from Tongi Bridge to Gazipur Chourasta will be suspended from 6am to 6pm on Saturday and Sunday, officials said.

But vehicles carrying Ijtema devotees or people on their way to the airport, Fire Service and Civil Defence vehicles and ambulances will not be barred.