Mumbai govt to examine Zakir Naiks objectionable speeches

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The daily also quoted home affairs minister Kiren Rijiju as confirming that Indian agencies were looking into Dr Zakir’s speeches, which he described as a “matter of concern”. Naik’s speeches, his social media accounts, and the sources of funding of a foundation run by him in Mumbai will be scrutinised, Fadnavis, who also holds the Home portfolio, said. He said: “If he is fighting enemies of Islam, I am for him”.

Considered an authority on “comparative religion”, Naik is the founder of Peace Television channel, Peace TV Bangla and Peace TV Urdu, and Dawah which invites people to understand Islam through dialogue.

The government till now has not taken any step against Naik who is banned by Malaysia, the United Kingdom and Canada for his hate speech aimed against other religions especially Hinduism.

Controversial Muslim preacher Zakir Naik has denied that his speeches promote terrorism, and welcomed investigations against him.

Dr Zakir Naik, whose sermons reportedly inspired two of the killers in the Dhaka terrorist attack last week, took to Twitter on Thursday after after bombs went off near Bangladesh’s biggest Eid gathering in the north of the country on Thursday.

“People whose language propagates violence against the nation’s unity should be banned”, Sawant said in the letter.

“Islam teaches love and peace”.

The five Indian states that border Bangladesh were on high alert Monday, with Indian police checking vehicles crossing the shared 4,000-km border, according to the head of India’s paramilitary BSF. So maybe we are failing somewhere.We should know the seriousness of this situation.

“In the present scenario, we expect the preachers, the gurus and Muslim leaders to tell the youth to take the right path”, Rao told ANI. “It is clear that he incited people”, BJP national secretary Shrikant Sharma said. The organization has shrugged off any responsibility for radicalising claiming that Naik has always condemned terrorism as un-Islamic.

The Mumbai-based cleric has come under the scanner after reports emerged that the terrorists involved in last week’s deadly attack on a café in Dhaka may have been inspired by his teachings. He is hugely popular in Bangladesh through his lectures on Peace TV. “This means at least in the case of Nibras and Rohan, they did not become radicalised overnight”. They wanted him to be barred from speaking here as they said he often demeaned other religions and could cause harm to Malaysia’s multi-religious harmony.

“If you listen to my talks, you will never ever find in any of them that I have condoned terrorism or killing of an innocent human being”, he added.