Kashmiris take to streets, social media to pitch for televangelist

SRINAGAR: Several Kashmiris came out on streets and took to the social media in defence of Islamic preacher Zakir Naik as the controversy surrounding him peaked and Union home minister Rajnath Singh ordered a thorough probe into his speeches.

After the brutal attack at a Dhaka cafe that left 22 people dead, media reports said one of the terrorists, Rohan Imtiaz, had followed Naik’s speeches closely.

The Islamic orator and founder of Mumbai-based Islamic Research Foundation has been in the eye of the storm since then, with home minister Rajnath Singh saying that his speeches were being examined by the government and television channels openly demanding a ban on him.

On Friday morning, members of Islamic Fraternity — a Muslim youth body —- held a demonstration at the Press Enclave in Srinagar with banners saying “Dr Zakir Naik Kashmir is with you”, “Zakir Naik is a man of peace and harmony” and “Stop false propaganda against Dr Zakir Naik”.

Protesters said all Naik did was spread the message of ‘peace’. They added Naik’s statements from his videos were quoted out of context and broadcast on television channels to fabricate a case against him.

Another major gathering took place outside the Jamia Masjid in Downtown Srinagar following the afternoon prayers. Meanwhile, chairman of the hardliner-Hurriyat faction Syed Ali Shah Geelani said that Naik and his TV channel are “propagating and preaching true message of Islam and he has no direct or indirect relation with the terrorist incidents which are taking place in Bangladesh or any other place of the world”. In a press statement, Geelani said that “the RSS and its allied parties are actually frustrated with the popularity of the true Islamic message and they are now finding reasons and excuses to silence the prominent and most accepted voice of Naik and the Peace TV”, adding that the channel was doing a “commendable job” in clearing misconceptions regarding the Islam across the world.

DESPITE BAN, YOU CAN STILL WATCH HIM ON TV

MUMBAI: Channels such as Peace TV that aired the sermons of Islamic preacher Zakir Naik were banned by the information and broadcasting ministry at least half a decade ago.

But they continue to be beamed into a large number of drawing rooms in the city through small cable operators, according to the cable operators’ associations.

“We have warned our members to abstain from showing banned channels. But some cable operators continue to show channels such as Peace TV, Hum TV, QTV and Madani Channel,” said Vinay Patil, chief adviser with a cable operator’s association in Mumbai.

The operators do it under pressure from viewers and get away owing to the police’s ignorance, he said. But a senior IPS official said the police keep a tab on airing of banned channels. “The violations mostly take place under pressure from certain religious communities,” the officer said.