Aesthetic mosque on Rangamati mountaintop draws attention of Muslim devotees

Well-decorated good-looking "Darus Salam Jame Masjid", located on the top of a mountain in the Rangamati district, has now drawn the attention of the Muslim community.

This aesthetic mosque was built in Ruilui Para of Sajek Valley in Baghaichhari Upazila from where the melodious sound of the call for prayers (Azan) comes from the minaret of the mosque.

Surrounded by green shrubbery and nature, the mosque stands 1,700 feet above sea level and is located on Ruilui Para of Rangamati -- a town in the Chattogram Hill Tracts (CHT) in southern Bangladesh.

The mosque was built at the cost of Tk3,85,65,788 on about an acre of land, earlier donated by the army.

This beautiful mosque, standing on a four-storey foundation, is 22 feet high. It has four domes and a tall minaret. The east-west length of the mosque is 65 feet, the north-south width is 81 feet, and the total area is 5,265 square feet.

Earlier, on 2 February 2020, the foundation stone of the mosque was laid next to the helipad in Ruilui Para by the then GOC of the army's 24th Infantry Chittagong Division Maj Gen SM Matiur Rahman.

Talking to the BSS, Darus Salam Jame Mosque's Pesh Imam and Khatib Md Moniruzzaman said, "The formal prayers at this mosque began with the Esha and Tarawih prayers of the first Ramadan of 2022." 

Currently, in addition to the five-time daily congregational prayers, Jumma and Tarawih prayers are also offered here. Like every year, two Hafizs have been appointed for Tarawih prayers, he said.

Local businessmen and numerous tourists participate in these congregations, he added.

Darus Salam Mosque Management Committee General Secretary Ziaul Haque Juboraj said, "The overall expenses of this mosque are met by donations from the Baghaihat Zone of the Army, local cottage-resort-restaurant businessmen, and tourists."

He said due to the high mountains, water is not available in Sajek. As a result, all the water used in the mosque, including ablution, has to be purchased and used.

This mosque requires an average of 5,000 litres of water every day. At the cost of Tk1 per litre of water, Tk5,000 is spent daily on water alone, he mentioned.

Locals said an average of about 3,000 tourists gather at Sajek every day. But on the special holidays, the number increases by 15 to 20 times.

Most of them are Muslim tourists. Due to the lack of a mosque, religious Muslim tourists have faced a lot of difficulties in offering prayers for so many years.

However, now tourists visiting Sajek can offer prayers at this mosque comfortably.

Tourists are very excited to have the opportunity to offer prayers in such a beautiful mosque in a deserted environment amidst the greenery of nature.

Sohel Arman, a tourist visiting Sajek from Dhaka, told BSS, "I had come here once four years ago. Since there was no mosque, I could not offer prayers in any congregation. However, this time, I feel a different kind of peace after coming here and being able to worship the Creator in such a peaceful and serene environment of the mosque."