Zakir Naik, a radical Islamist preacher and fugitive from justice, has been invited to deliver two lectures in Oman. The Indian government has multiple cases against him and is taking up the matter with Oman to bring him back to India. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has confirmed that Zakir Naik is an accused in numerous cases in India and is a fugitive from justice. The MEA spokesperson, Arindam Bagchi, stated that the Indian government will continue to take all necessary measures to bring him to face justice in India. Indian intelligence agencies are already in touch with Oman authorities to detain Naik during his visit on March 23, and the local Indian embassy is also in touch with agencies to detain and eventually deport him under local laws.
However, Zakir Naik’s lawyer Mubin Solkar has denied reports of his deportation. Naik arrived in Oman on Wednesday and will deliver two lectures in Oman. The Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs (MERA) of Oman is organizing a lecture by Naik entitled “The Holy Qur’an is a Global Necessity,” on the evening of Thursday, Ramadan 1, 1444 AH, corresponding to March 23, 2023, at the Oman Convention and Exhibition Center (Madinat Al-Irfan Theatre). The second lecture “Prophet Muhammad [PBUH] A Mercy to Humankind” is scheduled at Sultan Qaboos University on Saturday.
Naik faces charges of money laundering and hate speech in India and has been living in exile in Malaysia since 2017 as a runaway fugitive. The Indian government banned Naik’s Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) in 2016 on the basis that he had incited and supported the group’s members in their efforts to sow enmity, hostility, and other unfavorable feelings among diverse religious communities and groups. Naik migrated to Malaysia after departing from India. Malaysia had ruled out deporting Naik unless he broke Malaysian laws.
