PETALING JAYA: Indian preacher Zakir Naik says he is prepared to return to India to face charges of money laundering, but that he fears being jailed like many other Muslim suspects whom the courts found not guilty years later.
In an interview with India’s The Week magazine, Naik said he wants assurance from New Delhi that he will not be arrested until he is found guilty.
“If there is an assurance from the Supreme Court of India that if Dr Zakir Naik comes, they will not arrest me till I am convicted, I will come,” he said.
Adding that he still has faith in the Indian judiciary, Naik, who has been living in Malaysia as a permanent resident, said the Narendra Modi government had been undermining the justice system.
“Before the BJP government came, you could speak against the government and at least 80% of the time you would get justice. Today, the chances are 10-20%,” Naik told the Kerala-based magazine.
He said most Muslim who were detained for terror charges were released 10 to 15 years later after the courts found them innocent.
“So if I look at an average, I will be behind bars for about 10 years and my entire mission would be disrupted. Why should I be a fool?”
Naik also repeated his offer to talk to Indian investigators in Malaysia.
Last week, India’s Enforcement Directorate charged him in absentia with money laundering, accusing him of acquiring about Rs1.9 billion (RM114.5 million) worth of criminal assets.
The agency said Naik had made “inflammatory speeches and lectures” which incited a number of Muslim youths in India to commit terrorist acts.
Naik has strongly denied the accusations against him, and has evaded Indian authorities who have been seeking to deport him from Malaysia.
Naik in the interview with The Week again rejected accusations that he had inspired terrorist attacks.
“I challenge anyone to say that he was inspired (by me) to kill innocent people. If he is saying that, then he is lying,” he said, responding to claims that he inspired terrorist attacks in Bangladesh and the recent bombings in Sri Lanka.
Naik, who operates his evangelist satellite TV channel Peace TV as well as a host of other companies, also rejected the allegations of money laundering filed against him.
He said he earned more than Rs10 million (RM592,533) every month and has real estate businesses as well.
“It would be a crime if I used some of the money for drugs or terrorism. They said Harmony Media is a factory of terrorism. If it is promoting terrorism then how come the US allowed my channel for so many years?” he asked. - FMT
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.