Citing Flydubai Cockpit Stabbing and 'Security Concerns', Calcutta HC Denies Devotees Access to Mosque Near Airport
New Delhi: The Calcutta high court on Thursday (October 1) denied interim access to devotees to offer prayers at Bankra mosque, located near the runway of the Kolkata airport, on grounds of security concerns raised by airport authorities and the state government.
Justice Krishna Rao cited the September 30 stabbing of a flydubai pilot by his co-pilot during a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv while hearing a petition challenging the curb on regulated access to the 136-year-old mosque.
The Times of India reported that the judge referred to the incident after additional solicitor general Dhiraj Kumar Trivedi, appearing for the authorities, talked about multiple alleged security breaches as the airport. Senior advocate S.N. Mookherjee, representing the Airport Authority of India (AIA), also told the court that unauthorised individuals had been spotted on the runway, posing security threats.
"This happens only in India where logical expectations go beyond national security," said Trivedi.
To this, Justice Rao responded, "Now, you cannot say only in India. Now it's all over the world. Nobody can imagine yesterday's (September 30) incident. If that happens, we don't know where there is security."
The judge was talking about the flydubai mid-air confrontation abroad flight FZ1073, which was diverted to Saudi Arabia on Wednesday following the alleged stabbing incident.
Mosque access denied
The Bankra mosque, also known as Gouripur Jame Masjid, is older than the century-old Kolkata airport and is situated within its operational area. According to the mosque committee, the AIA abruptly stopped access to the mosque this year on July 11. Since then, no namaz has reportedly been offered at the premises.
The airport authorities are seeking the relocation for the mosque due to concerns around aviation safety and flight operations. Mookherjee claimed that the mosque committee had reportedly agreed to shifting the mosque elsewhere.
"They are agreeable to shift the mosque elsewhere. I will show the documents, which are being suppressed," he said, per the TOI report.
Senior advocate Kishore Datta, representing the mosque committee, said that even though the committee may be amenable to shifting, it must follow due process. "Do that. But not like this…My argument is that everything has a process. Maintain that process," Datta told the court.
He questioned why the authorities had not yet taken any action against individuals who were allegedly responsible for the said security breaches. He argued that people should be restricted from the mosque on this account.
Datta added that there had been no security concerns over the last 50 years and that regulated access for some more time would not have impeded on airport security. As per the TOI report, devotees had been using identity cards to enter the mosque and were escorted from the gate by security guards.
Alternate location for offering prayers
Opposing Datta's claims, Trivedi argued that prayers could be offered elsewhere. He added that prayers were not restricted to the mosque premises when Datta requested an interim order permitting devotees to resume namaz at the mosque.
Justice Rao ruled that one room could be provided in the airport itself for this purpose, dismissing the claims for continued namaz at the mosque.
Committee signals willingness to relocate
According to TOI, the mosque committee expressed a willingness to discuss relocation alongside the resumption of prayers. However, it also maintained that it was not empowered to make the decision regarding the relocation and would have to consult with Darul Uloom Deoband, the Muslim Personal Law Board and Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind before any decision was taken.
"Namaz has to be allowed. Discussions can be held simultaneously on relocation of the mosque," Jamil Ahmad, a committee member of the mosque, told TOI.
Access to the mosque has remained a contentious issue for decades because of the airport being built around its premises. Earlier, around 10 to 25 devotees had been visiting the mosque five times a day to offer namaz. They were regularly frisked by Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel at the Jessore Road gate of the airport before being escorted to the mosque and back.
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