Home Ministry issues notification on banning Zakir Naik's NGO: Key takeaways

Controversial Islamic preacher, Zakir Naik has been extolling Osama Bin Laden, proclaiming that every Muslim should be a terrorist and claiming that if Islam had indeed wanted 80% of Indians would not have remained Hindus, the government said justifying the ban imposed on his NGO Islamic Research Foundation (IRF).

The ban on IRF has been enforced under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and approved at a union cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
 

Declaration of the IRF as "unlawful" under Section 3 of the UAPA will force closure of its offices and interests across the country.
 

The move comes after the government found the Islamic preacher to be involved in utilising funds meant for his NGOs for radicalisation of youths, they said.
 

1. Home Ministry said Zakir Naik has been encouraging and aiding its followers to promote or attempt to promote, on grounds of religion, disharmony or feelings of enmity, hatred or ill-will between different religious communities, and inspiring Muslim youths and terrorists in India and abroad to commit terrorist acts.

2. Youths from Malavani in western suburbs who had left their home to join Islamic State earlier this year were also allegedly inspired by the preaching of the televangelist. 

Police had arrested some members of IRF for allegedly motivating and radicalising group youths from Kasargod in Kerala to join ISIS. The case is under investigation of the National Investigation Agency (NIA). 

3. It said such divisive ideology is against India's pluralistic and secular social fabric and it may be viewed as causing disaffection against India and thereby making it an unlawful activity.

"Statements of some terrorists arrested in the terrorist attack incidents or arrested ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) sympathisers revealed that they were inspired by the fundamentalist statements of Naik, clearly indicating the subversive nature of his preachings and speeches," the notification issued by Joint Secretary in the Home Ministry Sudhir Kumar Saxena said.

4. He has also justified suicide bombings, posted objectionable comments against Hindu gods and made derogatory statements against other religions. Sawantwadi police registered a case against him in 2012 for making derogatory comments on Hindu gods and filed a charge sheet for the same in 2014.

5. IRF came on radar of investigative agencies after one of the terrorists in Dhaka attack had allegedly posted onsocial media that they had been inspired by Naik's speeches. Naik is currently out of country apparently to evade arrest, sources said.