Taxi driver Zul Rahman says the dispute has turned the mosque in Avondale into "a prison" and deterred many Muslims from praying there.
"It's a dispute between two parties, but the real people who suffer are the Muslims who pray at the mosque," said Mr Rahman.
He prays five times a day, and says he goes to the Avondale mosque whenever he is in its vicinity.
"A mosque is supposed to be warm and welcoming, but all the iron bars and gates makes Avondale feel more like a prison now than a place for prayer."
Mr Abdullah believes "profit" was the motive for the board wanting him out.
But those fighting to have the him reinstated believe a "clash of ideologies" caused the dispute.
The imam follows the Salafi strand of Islam, while many on the board and worshippers at the mosque follow the Hanafi or Shafi'i strand of the faith.