Coronavirus: 25,000 people attend Laxmipur prayer
Ignoring a government restriction on mass gatherings to prevent the spread of coronavirus, at least 25,000 people gathered at Haidarganj of Raipur upazila on Wednesday to pray for relief from Covid-19.
Haidarganj Saiyed Manjil arranged the gathering at Haidarganj Taheria Rochimuddin Central Eidgah ground after Fazr prayer.
Mawlana Saiyed Md Anwar Hossain Taher Zabiri Al Madani conducted the prayer.
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Inspector Belayet Hossain, in-charge of local police outpost, and Tota Miah, officer-in-charge of Raipur Police Station, said they had no information about the gathering.
Saiyed Taher Zaberi, general secretary of a local mosque, could not be reached for comments.
AH Kamruzzaman, superintendent of district police, said it was a special prayer, not a rally but admitted that he did not have any prior information about it.
Anjan Chnadra Paul, deputy commissioner of Laxmipur, said that no permission was sought from the administration for the programme.
Covid-19, which was first reported in China, has infected over 200,000 people globally and claimed the lives of 8,232 people with a fatality rate of 9 percent. Bangladesh confirmed its first coronavirus death on Wednesday. The country has so far recorded 14 cases.
The government has shut down educational institutions and asked people to avoid public gatherings as part of measures to prevent the virus' spread.
