The founder of the Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) said in an interview recently that even Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was not too long ago barred from entering certain countries.
“About 15 years ago when he (Modi) was the chief minister of Gujarat state, there were many NGO reports that he was responsible for the killing of 2,000 Muslims within the state.
“There were reports filed against him in several parts of the world and he was barred entry from the United States, the United Kingdom and many other countries for several reasons.
“However, three years ago, when he won the elections, he became prime minister and all these sanctions were removed,” Naik told KTV Al Majlis, a TV channel run by Kuwait’s state-owned Kuwait Television (KTV), in an interview on May 26.
He lamented how just by being India’s PM, all the sanctions against Modi were lifted and Modi has since visited many countries, including Muslim nations, building ties.
Accusing Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of being against Muslims, Naik said he was expecting some backlash since Modi came to power.
“He (Modi) was waiting for some excuse to stop my activities,” Naik said, alleging that Indian authorities used the fact that one out of the six terrorists in an attack in Dhaka, Bangladesh last year had been a fan of his on Facebook, to come after him.
When asked how many Facebook fans he had, Naik answered: “About 16.6 million”.
In June last year, Bangladesh banned Naik’s channel Peace TV following allegations that it had incited terrorism.
Naik also referred to the selection of known Hindu nationalist, Yogi Adityanath as the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh as further proof of his accusation of state oppression against Muslims.
“The state of democracy in India is such that the one who asked to dig graves of Muslim women and rape the corpses has now become the chief minister of the largest state,” he told KTV Al Majlis.
In his defence, Naik said that he was not involved in any act of planning or inciting terrorism through his videos.
“My videos have been online for the last 10 to 15 years. So, why did the government only look into the matter now?
“Many times, the Indian government had even invited me to give a lecture on religion in the National Academy of Hyderabad,” he said.
He also repeated a sentiment he expressed at a press conference in Kuala Lumpur in April, where he claimed that the Indian police would torture him if he returned home.
“I told (the authorities) I am ready to give the interview on Skype, phone or video conferencing. If I go there, they will torture me. So why should I go there?” he said at a press conference following an event titled “Convergence of 150 intellectuals with Dr Zakir Naik: Countering Islamophobia” at the Universiti Malaya Alumni Clubhouse on April 16.
In March this year, India’s National Investigation Agency issued a notice for Naik to return to the country for questioning. He failed to do so.
The authorities there have also filed a money-laundering case against Naik, while his Mumbai-based IRF has been accused of inciting Muslims and promoting enmity between different communities.
Naik has insisted he has not broken any law under the Indian constitution, as “any one is allowed to preach and propagate the ideas of a religion” in the country.
Naik has been in the spotlight since last year, when he came to Malaysia to give talks in various states and events.
On April 18 this year, Malaysia’s Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi revealed that Naik had been given permanent residency status in the country more than five years ago.
More recently, the Middle East Monitor reported that Naik, 51, had been given citizenship by Saudi Arabia.