Clean chit to Zakir Naik; Islamic preacher won't be arrested on his return to India?

The Maharashtra State Intelligence Department has studied hundreds of YouTube videos and speeches given by Zakir Naik in and out of India.

Mumbai: Controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik, who is at the centre of a storm for allegedly inflammatory speeches, will not and cannot be arrested on his return to India, said a report on Tuesday.

According to The Hindu, the Maharashtra State Intelligence Department (SID) has given a clean chit to the controversial Islamic preacher.

The SID has gone through hundreds of YouTube videos and speeches given by Naik in and out of India as part of its preliminary investigation. A dossier of evidence has also been received and collected from the other intelligence teams in various states, the daily cited a senior official as saying.

“There is no case to be made out against the English-speaking preacher, except maybe the possible charge of hurting religious sentiments, but even that cannot be established from his speeches. We are tracking his movements and only if he speaks out of turn, can we ‘pin’ him down on a charge. For now, we are closely monitoring him,” said a senior police official.

Presently, Naik is in Saudi Arabia. H would proceed to the United Arab Emirates for a series of engagements and later visit Africa before leaving for Mumbai after a few weeks.

The Centre had indicated that the 50-year-old could face action if his speeches were found objectionable.

Naik himself went on social networking sites appealing for public support to help him combat the 'media trial' he is subjected to since the recent terror strike in Bangladesh.

Two of the Dhaka cafe attackers who slaughtered 20 hostages are reported to have drawn inspiration from Naik's speeches.

Reports said he inspired Hyderabad terrorists also.

Senior officials told The Hindu that Naik's strong defence of religious codes, references to slain al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) do not constitute any direct or indirect charges against him.

The Bharatiya Janata Pary's ally Shiv Sena has demanded stringent action against Naik under the law at par with the treatment given to Hindu activists.