KOLKATA: Entry to the 136-year-old Bankra mosque, located within the operational area of Kolkata airport, has been stopped indefinitely, airport authorities said on Sunday, citing security concerns over allowing access solely on the basis of Aadhaar cards. On Saturday, authorities had said access to the Gouripur Jame Masjid would remain suspended for two days as rain had damaged the approach road, necessitating urgent repairs. They had added that devotees would be allowed to offer prayers from Monday if the repair was completed on schedule.“The repair is complete but permission to offer namaz at the mosque cannot be granted at present because of security concerns raised by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS),” a senior Kolkata airport official said.Till Friday, around 70 devotees were allowed to offer prayers at the mosque every day in different time slots after producing their Aadhaar cards before CISF, which is responsible for security at the airport. On Sunday, CISF personnel at Gate 8 — through which devotees accessed the mosque — reportedly told worshippers they had not received any further instruction from the Airports Authority of India (AAI) regarding reopening the gate.“I went there at 12.20 pm on Sunday to find out when we could resume prayers and was told that runway repairs were underway and that entry would remain restricted until further orders. Similar runway repairs have been carried out earlier, but prayers were never stopped. Why aren’t the authorities clearly explaining the issue and indicating how long the closure will continue?” asked Abul Kalam, who last offered namaz at the mosque on Friday evening.Former minister Siddiqullah Chowdhury, also the president of the West Bengal unit of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, one of the stakeholders of the mosque, said he had written to the airport director seeking clarity on when devotees would be allowed to resume prayers. Members of the community were also scheduled to meet on Sunday evening to decide their next course of action.BCAS recently wrote to the airport authorities questioning the practice of allowing access solely on the basis of Aadhaar cards. Airport officials said they were awaiting fresh instructions on whether a new pass system would be introduced or whether public access to the mosque would be stopped permanently.Claiming that the mosque has prevented the planned extension of the secondary runway, local BJP MLA Sourav Sikdar alleged that the authorities had repeatedly offered an alternative site to the mosque committee, but it was unwilling to relocate. Union minister Sukanta Majumdar said on Sunday, “Earlier, no govt took any action because of appeasement politics. Our govt does not believe in it. What is the big issue if the mosque is shifted?”
