When we step into Andarkilla Shahi Jame Masjid in the port city of Chattogram, we can see numerous people sitting in rows on the balcony of the mosque every evening in the holy month of Ramadan. There is no difference between the rich and the poor when it comes to eating Iftar together.

Every day, thousands of people come from far and wide to participate in mass iftar. People from all walks of life joins the iftar to share the joy.

Andarkilla Shahi Jame Masjid is known to be the memorial of Mughal victory in Chittagong. Every day during the month of Ramadan, 3,000 to 4,000 people flock here to take part in Iftar and pray here.

Since 1996, Maulana Syed Muhammad Anwar Hossain Taher Jaberi Al Madani has been serving as Khatib in this mosque. Since 2001, a huge iftar has been organized here without discrimination between the rich and the poor, with the sole effort of the khatib of the traditional Jame Mosque.

Daily iftar is being organized here for about 4,000 fasting people. Devout Muslims flock from different parts of the city for Iftar. A unique atmosphere of equality and brotherhood is created there.

Regular iftar items include dates, juice, chickpeas, muri, jilapi, potato chops, samucha, anthan, onion, etc. Besides, seasonal fruits are also served here.

Organizers said that 4,000 people participate in the beginning of Ramadan, but by the end, it exceeds 5,000.

10 cooks are engaged to prepare the huge amount of food for these people while 20 employees and volunteers are engaged in Iftar distribution.

Among the people who come here to break the fast, there are people from the lower class of society to the higher class of society. There are college and university students, low income people, beggars, jobholders and businessmen too.

Every day after the Asr prayer, the fasting people sit in a row for Iftar in an orderly manner. And lecture related to Islamic questions is delivered by the Islamic scholars. Before the Iftar, a collective prayer also takes place by thousands of fasting people.

So the question rises, who pays for such a huge amount of food everyday?

The mosque officials said mainly wealthy people from different parts of the city donates the money and food on conditions of not disclosing their names.

Everyday many people sends Iftar items in the mosque soon after the noon, he said.

One of the volunteers said numerous people comes there for iftar everyday and no one goes unfed.

The joy of eating together with such a huge number of people is incomparable, he mentioned.

The iftar arrangements are made in every large mosques like Jamiatul Falah mosque and Enayet Bazar Shahi Jame Masjid, in the city for free, the arrangement in Andarkilla Shahi Jame Mosque, a 357 years old mosque, is something else.

Besides, a large arrangement for iftar has also been taking place at Premier University campus in the city’s OR Nizam Road area.

Former Chattogram City Corporation Mayor ABM Mohiuddin Chowdhury started the ritual here and this is still continued even after his death.

Anderkilla Shahi Jame Masjid: A witness of history

The Mughal Samrat Aurangzeb being fed up on the King of Arakan, sent Shaista Khan as Subedar or Governor of Bengal. In 1665, the King’s men led by Umeed Ali Khan, son of Shaista Khan, defeated the Dutch and gained the control of Sandwip.

At that time, Chattogram’s Andarkilla was the central area for the ruling Mogh, who hailed from Arakan area of Myanmar.

Aurangzeb’s force defeated the Mogh too on January 27 in 1966. Later, they changed the name for Chattogram into Islamabad and turned the Mogh’s fort into a symbol of victory by building a mosque there.

That mosque is currently what we know as Andarkilla Shahi Jame Masjid. The stone laid on the top of the entrance of the mosque still bear the witness of the victory of the Muslims in the area.

However, it is stated on the nameplate of the mosque that it was established by Shaista Khan, the then governor of the state.

On the other side of the coin, the mosque currently seems very old and requires reconstruction.

The markets across the boundary of the mosque has resulted in the lessening of the beautification of the antique spot.

The researchers said the stones laid in the mosque are similar to the stones of Raqqa in Syria. Meanwhile, the architecture is an example of the gorgeous Mughal architecture. Besides, the huge yard in front of the mosque, the designed pillars and the tombs resembles to the Persian architecture.

According to reports, the mosque is situated over 30 feet high from the sea level. It is 16 meter long and 6.9 meter width while the walls are 2.2 meter thick. The western wall of the mosque is made of terracotta, a aesthetic art form of burnt clay and the remaining three walls are made of stone.

The mosque has a total of 5 entrance, three in the east and one each in the north and south. Three domes on the roof of the mosque add to the beauty of the mosque. Of the four octagonal towers, the rear two still remaining.

Since its construction, this mosque of Andarkilla has become the main center of Islam in Chattogram. But in 1761, after the British took control of Chattogram, the Andarkilla mosque was converted into an armory and a stable.

They did not allow Muslims to perform any religious ceremony in this mosque for 94 years from 1761 to 1855. Later, Khan Bahadur Hamidullah Khan, a revenue officer under the British Raj, started a movement in protest. In the face of his movement, Andarkilla Mosque was reopened in 1856. Islamic Foundation is in charge of the mosque since 1986.

Another main feature of this mosque is that for more than a hundred years, Prophet Mohammad’s (PBUH) heirs have been serving as khatibs of the mosque. According to the historians, Hazrat Syed Abdullah Mirdad (RA) performed the first duty among the Prophet’s offsprings. The present Khatib Maulana Syed Muhammad Anwar Hossain Taher Jaberi Al Madani is the sixth generation of Abdullah Mirdad.

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