India waiting for Malaysia's response on Zakir Naik's extradition

India is waiting for Malaysia's response on the extradition of Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) president and preacher Zakir Naik, as informed in Ministry of External Affairs' press conference on Thursday.

External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said, "India and Malaysia have an extradition treaty and we have made an extradition request to Malaysia, we are waiting for their response in this matter."

He further said that the legal process for the same is near completion.

"Once it is complete, we will make an official request to Malaysian government very soon to send back Zakir Naik to India" Kumar said.

Earlier in March, the Indian government sought Naik's extradition from Malaysia accusing him of inciting youth to take up jihad.

There were reports that Naik had been given permanent residency in Malaysia.

Earlier in 2017, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) filed a charge sheet against Naik in a special court in Mumbai as part of which it said it would explore all the legal options to bring Naik back to India.