Reacting to Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir calling the Ahmadiyya community’s recent religious event in Panchagarh “controversial”, a spokesperson of the community said it “goes against their constitutional right”. “The government gave permission to hold this controversial event,” Fakhrul said in a press conference on March 13, video of which has generated reaction among netizens on social media. Speaking on the issue, Ahmad Tabsir Chowdhury, a spokesperson for the Ahmadiyya community, said, “First, Mirza  Fakhrul puts the blame squarely on the government, saying the attack on our religious event was staged by the government to divert public attention, and now he finds it convenient to call our congregation ‘controversial’.” Also Read: Fakhrul says govt allowed the Ahmadiyya religious event, calls it ‘controversial’ Referring to their constitutional right, Ahmad said, “Our religious gathering was set to be held within our premises. We have a right to hold such peaceful events.” Ahmad questioned: “How can he disregard our rights by calling our congregation ‘controversial’? We didn’t seek permission from the government to hold our event in a busy commercial area like Paltan in Dhaka. Rather, we planned to hold it inside our premises, it was on our property.” “When such irresponsible remarks come directly from a major political leader like Fakhrul, we are gravely disheartened,” the Ahmadiyya community spokesperson said. He further requested all political parties to at least maintain a modicum of decency while making comments on issues involving any minority community. Also Read: Govt orchestrated attacks on Ahmadiyya only to gain political mileage: Fakhrul Fakhrul’s remark came at a time when Basherkella – a pro-Jamaat-e-Islami Twitter account – condemned police action to stop the violence over the Ahmadiyya religious event and called for “boycotting” the community. The Ahmadiyya community has called it a “hate campaign” against them. Meanwhile, Jamaat-e-Islami’s Acting Secretary General Maulana ATM Masum issued a statement on March 5, asking the government to officially declare the Ahmadiyya community “non-Muslim”.

The holy Shab-e-Barat or Barat Night is a religious event for Muslims. Shab-e-Barat is observed as the ‘Night of Forgiveness’ or the ‘Day of Atonement’. This event is celebrated in South Asian, Central Asian, South East Asian, and Middle Eastern Muslim countries. Muslims observe the night of Shab-e-Barat on the 15th night of the month of Sha'ban in worship and pray for salvation. On this holy event, the practice of distributing halwa among neighbours, relatives, and poor people has become a part of the tradition. Let's take a look at 7 delicious halwa recipes for Shab-e-Barat to try at home.   7 Healthy Halwa Recipes for the Holy Shab-e-Barat  Carrot Halwa Recipe Ingredients: 1 kg carrots (grated), 2 and a half cups of boiled milk, sugar (as required), ½ tsp cardamom powder, 3 tbsp butter, a few almonds, a few pistachios, a few cashews Method: First, take a pan and butter, and then cook the grated carrots on low heat so that the rawness of the carrots goes away. Continue cooking until the smell changes. Then add the milk and cook as long as the mixture becomes thick. Now add the sugar and when it becomes thick, keep stirring. Add the cardamom powder and finally add the nuts. Transfer the halwa to a dish to set it. When it is cool, serve.   Chana Dal Halwa Recipe Ingredients  1 Cup chana dal, 1 cup water, 3 tbsp ghee, 1 tsp saffron, 1 cup sugar, 2 tsp cardamom powder, 1/2 tsp clove powder, 10 pieces almonds, 10 pieces cashew nuts Method: First, wash the chana dal and then soak it in water for two hours. Then cook the soaked chana dal and the water in a pressure cooker for about 10 minutes. Now, heal ghee in a pan and add the chana dal. Cook and stir frequently to make a thick liquid. Add saffron and stir well so that it mixes well. Then add sugar, cardamom powder, clove powder, almond, and cashew nut and remove from the stove when it becomes sticky and smells a good aroma. Garnish with Chopped almonds and serve.  Green Pea Halwa Recipe Ingredients : 1 cup chickpeas, 1 cup sugar, 1/4 cup ghee, 2 cardamom pods  For garnish: 1 teaspoon ghee, 5-6 pistachios ( chopped), 10-12 raisins Method: First, wash the green peas and blend them to have a good puree. Then heat ghee in a pan and then add the peas puree and keep stirring. Cook on low heat for 7-8 minutes. Then add sugar and cardamom powder and continue cooking and stirring until all the extra moisture is absorbed and the halwa becomes non-sticky. Remove the heat. Meanwhile, fry the dry fruits with ghee till fragrant and put them over the halwa for garnishing and then serve. 

Six cases have been filed and 81 people arrested in connection with the clashes between police and Muslim devotees over ‘Salana Jalsa’ event of the Ahmadiyya community on Friday (March 03, 2023). Among those, police filed four cases with Panchagarh Sadar Police Station, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) filed two cases and Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat another case. A total of 31 named people and 8,200 unnamed ones were made accused in the cases on various charges including spreading rumours, attacks, vandalism, looting and obstructing government work, according to police. Fazle Rabbi, 28, of the Rajnagar area and Rabbi Emon, (26) of the Satmera area of Tentulia upazila were arrested for spreading rumours on Facebook. Also Read: ‘Rumours against Ahmadiyya’: BNP leader among 19 held Ismail Hossain Jhanu, 25, of the Rajangarh area of Panchagarh municipality and Rasel Hossain, 28, of the Tular Danga area of the municipality were arrested in connection with the murder of Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat engineer Zahid Hasan. Besides, 77 people were shown arrested in the cases filed by the police and Rab on several charges and they were sent to jail through a court. According to police and case statements, sub-inspectors Masud Rana, Saidur Rahman, Shamsuzzoha Sarker,  Altaf Hossain, and DAD Abdus Samad on behalf of Rab-13 filed the cases at Panchagarh Sadar Police Station on March 4 night. Osman Ali, father of engineer Zahid Hasan, filed a case on behalf of Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat in connection with the murder. No one was named in the case, but 400 unnamed people were made accused. Also Read: ‘Hate campaign’ being run against Ahmadiyyas on Twitter, says member of community Police said two people who were allegedly directly involved in Zahid’s murder have been arrested. They gave confessional statements in connection with the murder. Panchagarh Superintendent of Police SM Sirajul Huda said the situation is under control now. Members of the police, Border Guard Bangladesh and RAB have been deployed at different points, he said. “We are investigating the incident and arresting those involved. No matter who the attackers are, they will not be spared. Raids are on to arrest the other accused,” said the SP. Read More: Clash over Ahmadiyya event: Law enforcers on high alert to avoid further trouble in Panchagarh  Earlier, on Friday, two people were killed and at least 50 others including policemen were injured in the clash between a section of Muslim devotees and police during a protest march of the devotees demanding the closure of an Ahmadiyya community’s event in Panchagarh district town. Later on Saturday, a vested interest group spread rumours in different parts of the district town and on social media saying that some Ahmidyya community members slaughtered two Muslims. Following the rumours, some young people equipped with sticks and sharp weapons blocked roads, carried out arson attacks, and looted shops and houses of the Ahmadiyya community. Read More: 20 hurt in clash between two BCL factions while paying homage at CU

Regional officials in Ethiopia on Tuesday confirmed 10 deaths and 250 people injured after a wooden platform collapsed during a religious event the day before.

Tens of thousands of Jewish people congregated Wednesday at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey to celebrate the reading of the entire Talmud in an event called Siyum HaShas — and drew a heavy security presence after recent anti-Semitic attacks in the area.