The Bishwa Ijtema is a huge gathering of millions of devotees on the banks of the Turag River in Tongi, Gazipur. The 58th gathering of the Bishwa Ijtema began with a general sermon by Maulana Ibrahim Deola of India after Maghrib on Thursday. In continuation of this, the sermon is being held step by step after the Fajr prayers today, Friday. The Friday prayers will be held in a large congregation at 1:30 pm.
In addition to Tablighi Jamaat followers, numerous followers from the capital Dhaka and surrounding areas will participate. So far, 2,150 foreign guests from 72 countries have come to the Ijtema Maidan. They are staying in designated areas and listening to the speeches of scholars from home and abroad.
This year's Bishwa Ijtema will be held in three phases. The first phase of the Bishwa Ijtema will begin on January 31 under the Bangladesh Tablighi Jamaat Shura-e-Nezam and will end with the final prayer on February 2. Then the second phase will begin on February 3 and end with the final prayer on February 5. Saad followers will organize the third phase of Bishwa Ijtema on February 14 after a break of 8 days. The 2025 Bishwa Ijtema will end with the final prayer on Sunday, February 16. Later, Saad followers will hand over the ground to the administration after Maghrib on February 18.
On Friday (January 31) morning, thousands of devotees were seen gathering at the Tongi Ijtema ground and the banks of the Turag River on the occasion of the Ijtema. Among them, thousands of devotees are staying under the bamboo and jute awnings at the main Ijtema ground. Some of them are listening to the sermon. Some are busy cooking, doing ablution and bathing. Meanwhile, devotees from different parts of the country are entering the ground in groups. Some of them have multiple bags and pots on their heads, some on their shoulders, and some in their hands.
In the past years, the followers of the two sides of Tablighi, Maulana Jobair and Saad Kandhalvi, used to perform Ijtema separately in two phases. However, this time, for the first time, the followers of Maulana Jobair will perform Ijtema alone in two phases. The first phase of Ijtema will be held from January 31 to February 2. Devotees from 41 districts and a part of Dhaka will participate in this phase. Then, the second phase of Ijtema will be held from February 3 to 5. The final prayers will be held on February 2 and 5 respectively. And the followers of Maulana Saad are scheduled to perform Ijtema from February 14 to 16.
