The Calcutta High Court on Thursday, 1 October 2026, declined to grant interim permission for prayers to resume at the Bankra Mosque located within the premises of the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata, as reported in Economic Times.
Justice Krishna Rao was hearing a petition challenging the suspension of access to the mosque, where prayers have remained stopped since July 11. The petitioners had sought an interim arrangement allowing worshippers to access the mosque under the regulated system that was followed earlier.
During the hearing, the court also referred to Wednesday’s incident involving Indian pilot Smit Machchhar of flydubai Flight FZ1073, who fought off his co-pilot during an alleged attempt to crash the Boeing 737-8 aircraft.
Justice Rao said, “Now you cannot say only in India; it is now all over the world.”
Referring to the incident, he added, “If that happens, I don’t know where the security is.”
Petitioners Say Mosque Predates Airport
Senior advocate Kishore Dutta, appearing for the petitioners, told the court that the Bankra Mosque is around 136 years old and predates the present airport infrastructure.
According to Dutta, the aerodrome began functioning in 1924, while the mosque had already existed at the site. He said a village named Bankra was acquired for construction of the airport, but the mosque was allowed to remain within the airport premises.
Dutta said that worshippers had been allowed to access the mosque for prayers and other religious rituals for years, with security arrangements in place.
He submitted that, under the earlier arrangement, people seeking to offer prayers were subjected to security checks and transported to and from the mosque by security personnel in buses.
However, access was stopped from July 11, preventing local worshippers from entering the mosque to offer prayers and perform other rituals.
Maintaining that there had previously been no security concerns regarding the regulated access, Dutta sought an interim order permitting the earlier arrangement to continue until the court takes a final decision on the petition.
Centre And AAI Cite Security Concerns
Additional Solicitor General Dhiraj Trivedi opposed the request for interim relief, arguing that the issue concerns national security.
He told the court that airports had not faced the same level of security threats until the 1993 hijacking of an Indian Airlines aircraft travelling from New Delhi to Srinagar, after which the security situation had changed significantly.
Trivedi said the concerns surrounding access to the mosque could not be considered separately from airport security.
During the hearing, he stated, “This happens only in India where logical expectations go beyond national security.”
Representing the Airports Authority of India (AAI), senior advocate S.N. Mookerjee also cited several security breaches in and around the mosque.
Mookerjee told the court that people visiting the mosque had, on certain occasions, been found in the airport’s apron area.
He further submitted that the mosque committee was agreeable to shifting the structure to another location and claimed there had been no protests after prayers were stopped on July 11.
The airport authorities have maintained that the mosque is situated within the operational area of the airport and close to the runway, with aviation security concerns forming part of the dispute over access and its possible relocation.
Court Refers To Recent Flydubai Incident
The issue of airport security also came up in the context of the recent flydubai incident.
Indian pilot Smit Machchhar was seriously injured after being attacked by his co-pilot during an alleged attempt to crash Flight FZ1073, which was operating from Dubai to Tel Aviv. The aircraft was subsequently diverted to Saudi Arabia.
Justice Rao referred to the incident while considering the security arguments advanced before the court.
The court, however, did not issue an interim order permitting prayers at the Bankra Mosque.
The petition will now come up for further hearing on 7 October 2026.
Subscribe to our channels on WhatsApp, Telegram, Instagram and YouTube to get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.
