Gouripur Jame Masjid, locally known as the Bankra Mosque, at the Kolkata airport
Kolkata: Three days after devotees were barred without notice from entering the Gouripur Jame Masjid, locally known as the Bankra Mosque, at the airport, community elders said they will avoid confrontation and instead pursue legal recourse to restore access to the 136-year-old place of worship. Community leaders said they would challenge the restriction legally, citing The Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, which bars the conversion of any place of worship and requires that its religious character be maintained as it existed on Aug 15, 1947. Kalam said the community had always cooperated with airport officials and had taken precautions due to the sensitivity of the location.
Whatever the court decides will be accepted by us,” said Abul Kalam, a member of the Bankra community and a regular worshipper at the mosque. We had asked the authorities to write to the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind or Darul Uloom Deoband to find a peaceful religious resolution to the deadlock,” he said. Those present expressed frustration and a sense of betrayal over the sudden denial of entry, but resolved not to block roads, take out aggressive protests, or enter into any clash with the authorities. “The mosque is a house of God where we pray in peace. There cannot be any violence associated with it. We have always cooperated with airport officials. Had it been a mazar or a dargah, we would have been able to relocate it. But when it is a mosque, we do not have the authority to approve relocation. He added that the issue dated back to the relocation of the Bankra neighbourhood after the airport expanded in the late 1950s and early 1960s, while the community mosque remained where it stood.
The decision was taken after a late-night meeting on Sunday in the Bankra neighbourhood off Jessore Road, opposite Kolkata airport.