Thousands of followers of the Tabligh Jamaat faction loyal to Maulana Mohammed Saad Kandhalvi assembled at the capital's Kakrail Mosque and its adjacent areas yesterday as per its scheduled programme.

As they started to throng the area since morning, with many coming from outside Dhaka, additional police personnel were deployed there to avert any untoward situation. They attended a brief sermon followed by Juma prayers.

Several followers of the faction said those who are not involved in the Dawah (invitation to Islam) activities left the Kakrail area after the prayers while those involved in such activities stayed back at the mosque.

From the sermon, some instructions were also given to the followers, they added.

Witnesses said the gathering extended from Kakrail intersection to Matsya Bhaban intersection.

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Let Nizamuddin Markaz’s followers hold 1st phase of Biswa Ijtema

As a result, vehicular movement remained closed on these roads since the morning.

After the prayers, an announcement was made through a megaphone from inside the mosque that a larger gathering of the faction would be held on December 7.

A follower who came to Kakrail from the city's Kalyanpur area in a group of 20 said any division in the Tabligh Jamaat activities is not expected, since it is a pathway of religion.

He said that although he is a follower of Maulana Saad, he feels that every school of thought within Tabligh should work together for the greater good.

Mizanur Rahman, a follower of Maulana Saad who came from Barishal to join the gathering, said the Saad faction has been holding the second phase of Biswa Ijtema, but this time they want to hold the first phase.

He added that they also want the presence of Maulana Saad at the Ijtema venue.

On Wednesday, the Tabligh Jamaat faction loyal to Maulana Saad demanded that the government allow the followers of Delhi's Nizamuddin Markaz (the Tabligh headquarters controlled by Maulana Saad) to hold the first phase of Biswa Ijtema next year.

Speaking at a press conference at the Jatiya Press Club, leaders of the faction also demanded that the Kakrail Markaz, the main centre of Tabligh Jamaat in Bangladesh, be handed over to the followers of the Nizamuddin Markaz.

"It will be a big mistake if anyone tries to deny us our due rights and property," said Muhammad Azimuddin, imam of Kakrail Mosque.