The famous mosque received a record amount in donations over the past four months, with the cash filling up 27 sacks
Published : 21 Apr 2024, 09:51 AM
The nine donation boxes at the Pagla Mosque in Kishoreganj have collected Tk 77,867,537 in cash – a new record. The massive intake filled up 27 sacks at the mosque.
The donation boxes also held foreign currency and gold jewellery, the value of which had yet to be estimated, said Shawkat Hossain, an administrative official at the mosque.
The boxes were last opened on Dec 9, 2023. A total of Tk 63,251,423 had been inside – a record for the time.
The boxes at the mosque were opened at 7:30am on Saturday in the presence of Kishoreganj Deputy Commissioner and Pagla Mosque Committee President Mohammad Abul Kalam Azad and Kishoreganj Superintendent of Police Mohammad Russell Sheikh.
Later, 70 bank officers-employees, 34 teachers and 102 students of the Pagla Mosque and Madrasa started counting money under the supervision of six executive magistrates, including Additional District Magistrate Kazi Mahua Momtaz. It took 14 hours to finish counting the money.
The three-storey Pagla mosque, with its high minarets and three domes is one of the historic religious buildings in Kishoreganj. This mosque covers about four acres in the Harua area on the banks of the Narsunda River at the western end of the district town. Thousands can pray together at the location with separate arrangements for women.
There are two different legends regarding the naming of the mosque.
One story says that around 500 years ago, Dewan Zilkadar Khan, one of the twelve chieftains under Isa Khan, became engrossed in spiritual pursuits on the banks of the river at the location. Khan is popularly known as 'Jil Qadr Pagla' and later, when a mosque was built there, it came to be known as 'Pagla Masjid'.
Another popular legend says that a childless begum of the then Haiwatnagar zamindar family of Kishoreganj was known as 'Pagla Bibi'. The Dewanbari begum saw the mosque in a dream and had it built on the banks of the Narsunda, which is why it came to be known as 'Pagla Bibir Mosque'.
Many people in the greater Mymensingh region believe that vows or donations to the mosque will lead to their wishes being granted. That is why many donate cash, jewelry, even livestock like cows, goats and poultry to the mosque. Sometimes, donors include people of other religions.
The donation boxes at the mosque are opened every four months. The massive donations, unveiled in the presence of the local administration, regularly make headlines.
The mosque’s income goes to providing various services or paying for the medical treatment of those with difficult illnesses.