Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who is in India for the BRICS Summit, has confirmed to NDTV that the issue of extradition of fugitive Islamic preacher Zakir Naik did come up during discussions in New Delhi.
“We thought we should keep it very private to protect the interests of both nations. But we, of course, put it on the priority list for building trust and relationship between our countries,” he added. On the issue of extradition, Anwar Ibrahim, however, added that Malaysia needs to ensure the rule of law. “Respect the rule of law and the importance of these bilateral relations. Controversial Indian Islamic preacher Zakir Naik lives in Malaysia as a permanent resident while remaining a wanted fugitive in India on charges of money laundering and hate speech. He was subsequently granted permanent residency. India has formally requested his extradition, but Malaysia has maintained that it will only cooperate through established legal channels if concrete and credible evidence is provided. Naik has been a source of embarrassment for Malaysia. He later issued an apology to Malaysians for the remarks, and Malaysian authorities briefly barred him from public speaking across several states.
In 2019, he faced widespread public and political backlash in Malaysia following racially sensitive remarks concerning ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities.
“In private discussions, of course, these engagements continue,” Ibrahim, who had a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday, told NDTV. “We have some understanding of it (extradition demand) but we need to do it very cautiously,” he said. Read | Malaysian PM Calls Gaza War “Israeli Terrorism”, Dodges Pak Terror Question Naik moved to Malaysia in 2016 after Indian authorities initiated investigations against him and his network, including the Islamic Research Foundation and Peace TV .
Interpol has previously declined to issue a Red Notice against him, citing a lack of sufficient evidence.
