The Islamic conference, organised by Ulama-Mashayekh Bangladesh with the objective of promoting “Dawat and Tabligh, protection of Qawmi madrasa, and preservation of faith,” concluded with a 9-point declaration and a final prayer.
The conference took place at Dhaka's Suhrawardy Udyan on Tuesday (5 November) where leading scholars from across the country, including senior leaders of the Tabligh Jamaat, addressed the gathering.
The conference declaration was read by Maulana Mahfuzul Haque, Secretary General of Wifaq (Qawmi Madrasa Education Board).
In the nine-point declaration, participants demanded an end to conspiracies by fringe elements against the Tabligh movement, the mandatory inclusion of religious education in the general curriculum, and the withdrawal of all cases filed against scholars by the previous government.
They further demanded that those responsible for the Shaapla Chattar massacre be brought to justice, and justice for the 2018 brutal attacks by the Sad group at Tongi Ijtema grounds. It was unequivocally stated that Maulana Saad would not be allowed to enter Bangladesh under any circumstances.
Additionally, the government should permit the Alami Tabligh to conduct the World Ijtema in two government-sanctioned phases, as per tradition, while the Kakrail Mosque would henceforth be administered solely under Shura committee supervision.
They also called for an immediate declaration of the Ahmadiyya community as non-Muslim.
The conference witnessed a large gathering of scholars and clerics who filled Suhrawardy Udyan and surrounding areas.
Senior scholars in attendance asserted that imitation is never accepted by the masses and that it is the government's duty to curb such imitation.
They denounced the so-called "imitation" Tabligh faction for allying with fascist elements and securing various privileges, further accusing them of lobbying near the interim government, which they warned must be stopped.
Among the notable scholars who addressed the conference were Hifazat Amir Maulana Shah Muhibullah Babunagari, Maulana Khalil Ahmad Qasemi, Director of Hathazari Madrasa, Maulana Abdul Hamid Pir Sahib of Modhupur, Maulana Abdur Rahman Hafeezi, Maulana Nurul Islam Adib Sahib Huzur, Maulana Obaidullah Farooq, Maulana Rashidur Rahman, Maulana Sheikh Ziauddin, Maulana Sajidur Rahman, Maulana Abdul Quddus of Faridabad, Maulana Nurul Islam Olipuri, Maulana Khalid Saifullah Ayyubi, Maulana Bahauddin Zakariya, Maulana Mahfuzul Haque, Maulana Abu Taher Nadvi, Maulana Arshad Rahmani, Maulana Salahuddin Nanupuri, Maulana Mustaq Ahmad, Principal Mizanur Rahman Chowdhury, Maulana Anwarul Karim, Mufti Mohammad Ali, Mufti Mansurul Haque, and Mufti Delawar Hossain, among others.
