Nik Aziz, Malaysian Indian Progressive Association president Rajaretnam Arumuggan said unlike Zakir, the former Kelantan Menteri Besar was a “wise and just leader”.

“Nik Aziz and Zakir are worlds apart. One is an ulama while the latter is a preacher who belittles other religions,” he said during a press conference here today.

Rajaretnam also said that Zakir should focus on uniting Muslims, currently divided due to the different schools of thought in Islam through the right channels.

“But no, he wants to find weaknesses in another religion that he feels is not right.”

He said the Mumbai-born preacher had no right to belittle another religion, stressing that one needed to be an expert in the field if one wanted to talk about the religion.

“Even if I have read the Quran 100 times, know Arabic, have read the Hadith many times and know about Islam, but I have never practised Islam, can I debate on Islam?”

Rajaretnam also questioned Zakir’s motive in having a debate on religions because there is a winner and a loser.
Faith, he argued, was personal and it was also a special relationship between a person and God and it should be respected.

Rajaretnam added that even if a person was an atheist, he should be respected.

“That’s is how we create peace.

“Zakir is not creating peace. He is breaking peace to pieces,” he said, adding that the government should not entertain Zakir.