Turkish firm Çelebi withdraws plea from Bombay High Court against security clearance revocation

Turkish firm Çelebi on Thursday withdrew its plea from Bombay High Court against Indian government’s revocation of its security clearance and the resulting termination of its operational agreements at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport.

The move by Çelebi came after the Delhi High Court on July 7 dismissed similar pleas filed by other Çelebi subsidiaries, upholding the government's decision on grounds of national security.

A bench of Justice BP Colabawalla and Firdosh Pooniwalla on Thursday allowed Celebi's request to withdraw the plea.

The government's decision to withdraw security clearance was taken following the four-day Indo-Pak military conflict during which Turkey openly backed Pakistan - a development that Indian authorities considered a threat to national security.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation, acting through the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), withdrew Çelebi’s security clearance on May 15, 2025, invoking national security grounds.

Celebi Nas Airport Services, a subsidiary of a Turkish aviation services firm Celebi Aviation Holding, then filed a writ petition before the Bombay High Court seeking to suspend and annul the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security’s administrative decision cancelling its security clearance.

Çelebi asserted that the clearance was revoked on unspecified national security grounds and led to the immediate and unilateral termination of its concession agreement at the Mumbai airport by the Mumbai International Airport Limited.

In proceedings before the Delhi High Court concerning similar issues at Indira Gandhi International Airport, another subsidiary, Çelebi Airport Services India, had challenged the revocation of its security clearance by the Central government.

Justice Sachin Datta of Delhi High Court had dismissed that plea on July 7.

He had reasoned that national security considerations can override principles of natural justice, while dismissing Çelebi's argument that its security clearance was revoked without proper notice.

In light of the said decision, Çelebi today chose to withdraw the plea before the Bombay High Court.