Maulana Noor-ur Rehman Barkati, the controversial Shahi Imam of the city's Tipu Sultan Mosque, who had threatened 'jihad' and refused to take off the beacon from his vehicle, was on Wednesday sacked from the post.
The sacking comes two days after a police complaint was lodged against Barkati by the mosque's trustee board.
A two-page "notice of termination of service" was issued to Barkati by Arif Ahmed, trustee of Prince Gholam Mohammad Waqf Estate here.
A complaint was lodged with the Bowbazar police station against Barkati after he allegedly snatched away the keys of the official room of the mosque. A trustee of Prince Ghulam Ahmed Wakf Estate told the reporters that a notice has been served to Barkati asking him to vacate the office room allotted to him. His deputy has been asked to conduct prayers and a new Imam will soon be appointed in his place.
"We have removed Maulana Noor-ur Rahman Barkati from the post of Shahi Imam of Tipu Sultan Mosque for his anti-national statements. We never expect an Imam to cross his line and misuse his post," the trustee member said.
The controversial cleric defied the orders of the Centre and said that he had a right to use red beacon light in his car. He also claimed that he was a religious leader and using the red beacon for decades. He further elaborated that he would not follow the orders of the Centre and clarified his decision to stick on to the use of beacon by saying that only the orders of the state government are effective in Bengal.