Eid Jamaat has been held at Sholakia ground since 1750. According to documents and records, the age of Sholakia Eidgah is roughly 271 years. 78 years after its establishment, in 1828, in the first big congregation, 1 lakh 25 thousand devotees performed Eid prayers together in this ground. From this number which is also called Sualakh in Bengali, the name of this field became ‘Sualakhia’, which has evolved into Sholakia. Sholakia Eidgah, a symbol of Kishoreganj's heritage, has a place in people's hearts. Shah Sufi Syed Ahmed (R), the senior man of the local Haybatnagar Saheb Bari, led the congregation.
The largest Eid-ul-Fitr congregation in the subcontinent is held at the ancient and traditional Sholakia Eidgah Maidan on the banks of the Narsunda River on the eastern edge of Kishoreganj district town. This traditional Eidgah of Sholakia was established by the people of Haybatnagar zamindar's house in Kishoreganj town.
Dewan Mannan Dad Khan, the 6th descendant of Isha Khan, one of the Bara Bhuiyans of Bengal, a zamindar of Haybatnagar, waqf 4.35 acres of land for the Sholakia Eidgah in 1950 as per his mother's will. That waqf document mentions that Eid Jamaat has been held in this ground since 1750.
There is a belief among the local Muslim community that if one can perform the prayers for three consecutive Eids in this field, one can get the reward of performing Hajj once. That is why Sholakia Eidgah Maidan is also known as 'Mecca of the Poor'. Every year millions of devout Muslims from different districts of Bangladesh as well as foreign worshipers perform Eid-ul-Fitr prayers at this Eidgah Maidan.
The main area of this field in Kishoreganj mouza is presently 6.61 acres. Surrounded by a low wall, there are a total of 265 rows at the Sholakia Eidgah ground where more than one and a half lakh devotees perform prayers together.
Besides, due to lack of space in the field, the same number of devotees stood in the vacant space, road and nearby areas adjacent to the Eidgah and participated in the largest Eid Jamaat.
It is known that eminent scholars have performed Imamate in this traditional field. According to the information received, after the first big congregation, those who have led the prayers are: Hazrat Maulana Hafez Muhammad Hazrat Ullah, Hazrat Maulana Peshwari, Hazrat Maulana Musleh Uddin, Alhaj Maulana Hamidul Haq, Hazrat Maulana Mazharul Haq, Hazrat Maulana Abdul Gani, Hazrat Maulana Athar, Hazrat Maulana Abdul Mannan, Hazrat Maulana Abul Khair Muhammad Nurullah and Maulana Abul Khair Muhammad Saifullah.
Allama Farid Uddin Masood has been leading the Eid Jamaat since 2009. However, in the event of a militant attack before the start of Eid Jamaat in 2016, Maulana Farid Uddin Masood was replaced by Imam Hafez Maulana Shoaib Abdur Rauf, the imam of the Barabazar Jame Mosque in the city of Alternative Imam.
However, for the last three years, the Jamaat has been held under the chairmanship of Maulana Farid Uddin Masood, the chairman of the Bangladesh Ulema-Mashayekh Solidarity Council.
But due to the Corona epidemic, Eid Jamaat was not held in 2020. There is uncertainty about holding Jamaat again.
In 2006, NTV hosted a live broadcast of the Eid Jamaat. Since 2007, Channel I has been broadcasting Eid Jamaat regularly. Besides, other print and electronic media cover the news of this Eid Jamaat every year.
Every year on the day of Eid-ul-Fitr, Sholakia Eidgah becomes the gathering place of the Muslim community. Standing in a row, they perform prayers irrespective of rich and poor.
The purpose of all is the same, so that under no circumstances should one be deprived of the opportunity to participate in the congregation, to gain nearness to God. They left Sholakia on their way home after Jamaat with the teaching of building a new society on the basis of equality and justice.