Zakir Naik

Authorities have busted a terror network allegedly linked to ISIS and foreign handlers, accused of radicalizing Indian youth online. Teams across multiple states apprehended suspects involved in spreading jihadi propaganda, including videos of extremist figures. The group reportedly aimed to establish an Islamic State in India, with links traced to Pakistan, Afghanistan, Syria, and Bangladesh.

Malaysian PM Mahathir Mohamad said that Narendra Modi did not request the extradition of zakir naik during a meeting in Moscow earlier this month. "We are trying to find some place he can go to but at the moment, no one wants to accept him (Naik)," he said. Naik is wanted in India for alleged money laundering and inciting extremism through hate speeches.

Fugitive televangelist zakir naik could soon become a stateless person, with the Regional Passport Office, Mumbai, serving him a 10-day ultimatum to submit his passport in person or face its revocation.

Naik has reportedly been travelling between Saudi Arabia, Malaysia and other countries, but this will now restrict his movement. NIA, probing Naik's speeches that allegedly incited youth to commit terror acts, had moved for passport revocation after he failed to respond to its multiple notices asking him to join the investigation.

The NIA carried out searches at 17 premises of controversial Islamic preacher zakir naik, his NGO and a few associates for the third consecutive day on Monday, even as it blocked the website of outlawed Islamic Research Foundation founded by him.

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has met zakir naik, wanted in India for alleged terror activities and money laundering, and a ruling party strategist has stoutly defended the government's decision not to deport the controversial Islamic preacher, Malaysian media reported on Sunday.

Leaders of Vishwa Hindu Parishat (VHP), Hindu Jagaran Vedike (HJV), Bajrang Dal and Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) have urged the city police and Dakshina Kannada district administration not to give permission for Islamic preacher zakir naik’s programme in the city.

The NIA probe has revealed that ISIS operative, Abu Anas, arrested from Rajasthan in January 2016, had been given Rs 80,000 by zakir naik's NGO, Islamic Research Foundation, as a scholarship amount in October last year.

Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Wednesday sought a clarification from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and home minister Amit Shah on controversial Islamic preacher zakir naik's claim that the Centre had offered him safe passage back to India in exchange for his support for abrogation of Article 370 in J&K.

Controversial Islamic preacher zakir naik, wanted by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on terror charges, has applied for Malaysian citizenship, according to agency sources.

The Centre on Monday sought in-camera proceedings in the special tribunal examining the validity of the ban on controversial preacher zakir naik’s Islamic Research Foundation.

Providing a hope to Indian investigators, Malaysian deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said on Wednesday that controversial televangelist zakir naik, who has been chargesheeted under terror charges in India, will be extradited if a formal request is sent to Malaysia under mutual legal assistance treaty (MLAT) by the Indian government.

A host of top Muslim clerics and politicians may be rallying behind televangelist zakir naik swearing by his scholarly talks on Islam but Darul Uloom Deoband-Islamic seminary highly revered in Asia-has described the controversial Islamic preacher as "religiously deviated" because his talks are not authentic and that Muslims should not rely on his speeches.

City police is yet to take a decision on granting permission for organizers to hold religious meet involving Indian Islamic preacher zakir naik as main speaker.

The external affairs ministry has not received any communication from the Malaysian government regarding the deportation of controversial Islamic preacher zakir naik to India, official sources said on Wednesday.

Malaysian PM Mahathir Mohamad on Monday said that his country has the right not to extradite Islamic preacher zakir naik to India, since the fugitive evangelist claims he will not get a fair trial back home, according to a media report. "Zakir feels that he is not going to get a fair trial (in India)," Mahathir was quoted as saying by The Star newspaper.

"I have been giving public lectures for last 25 years but never encouraged terrorism," controversial Islamic preacher zakir naik said on Friday. "My statements have been taken out of context and doctored," zakir naik said in his press conference via Skype from Medina.

Congress leader Salman Khurshid welcomed reports about Naik, the controversial Islamic preacher who has been staying abroad to evade arrest in various cases in India, likely to return to the country.

The central government expressed disappointment and condemnation over Islamic preacher zakir naik's visit to Pakistan, where he was warmly welcomed. Naik, wanted in India for hate speech and terror-related charges, is set to deliver lectures across major Pakistani cities, highlighting his controversial background and ongoing legal issues. Naik, 58, is the founder of the Islamic Research Foundation (IRF). A doctor by profession, he is known for delivering inflammatory lectures in English, unlike many other Islamic preachers who use Urdu or Arabic.

The Indian government has sent a formal request to Malaysia for the extradition of controversial Islamic preacher zakir naik, sources told ANI on Thursday. Naik, who has been living in Malaysia for the last three years, is facing charges of inciting communal disharmony and committing unlawful activities in India.

The Union home ministry has sought the opinion of the law ministry on whether Mumbai-based Salafist preacher zakir naik can be booked under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) for his speeches seen as instigating people into religious extremism and justifying terror acts.

A Congress MLA in Uttar Pradesh, Imran Masood, batted for controversial preacher zakir naik on Monday, saying he had never supported terrorism and he was the victim of a witch-hunt by the media and security agencies.

Shiv Sena has demanded a ban on Islamic preacher zakir naik in India alleging he spreads “inhuman” and “revengeful” speeches through his private TV channels. Sena MP Arvind Sawant wrote to Union home minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday demanding a ban on Naik’s entry into India.