Government has attacked community: Zakir Naik

Controversial televangelist Zakir Naik has written an open letter claiming that the government has not only attacked him but the entire community by banning his organisation from receiving foreign funds. “What have I done to earn ‘Dr Terror’ tag ” he asked. In the letter, he also appealed the Indian Muslims to continue the fight without feeling threatened.

The preacher wrote the open letter on Saturday to Indians titled ‘Five questions and an appeal’. He said that the system and investigative agencies are working towards a pre-meditated goal. “Let’s not be gullible enough to assume that there isn’t a deeper agenda behind this vicious campaign. This is not just an attack on me, it’s an attack against Indian Muslims,” the letter stated.

The 51-year preacher, who founded Islamic Research Foundation in 1991, preaches about Islam and conducts lectures mostly about Islam being superior to other religions. Mr Naik asked, “I’ve been preaching for 25 years. Not just in India but across the world. What exactly did I do now to earn the tags of ‘terror preacher’, ‘Dr. Terror’ and ‘hate monger’ Of 150 countries where I’m respected and my talks are welcomed, I’m being called a terrorist influencer in my own country.”

Calling the act of the government a “witch hunt”, Mr Naik who is currently said to be abroad, questioned the motive of the investigators for banning him and IRF. “Never mind that the legal agencies have found no wrongdoing — financial or otherwise. The message is clear: it’s not a question of whether I’ve committed a crime or not. It’s a question of using desperate measures to kill peace and harmony,” he said.

Mr Naik went a step ahead and stated that a ban against IRF and him is a direct attack on all the Muslims in India. “...this ban will set a precedence of unspeakable injustices against the 20 crore Muslims of India. This action will embolden and encourage every fringe element in the country to do as they please. If you thought intolerance increased in the country recently, this action of the government will take it to an all-time high. The Muslim population is already feeling threatened and insecure and I can’t even imagine how they will feel after this action. Muslims are bound to think that today it is Zakir Naik, tomorrow it could be any one of them.” He further added that the actions of the government and the investigators is a ‘conspiracy theory.’