Islamic preacher Zakir Naik addressing a meeting at Kozhikode. ManoramaMumbai: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) said that the young people who set out from Mumbai to join the IS were encouraged to do so by the speeches of Zakir Naik, an Islamic preacher.
The NIA came to the conclusion from Facebook accounts as well as statements provided by some who are under custody. Meanwhile, former police commissioner Satyapal Singh said that even though a report was submitted to the government in 2008 that Naik's speeches were inflammatory, no action was taken.
The NIA hinted that Ayaz Sulthan, a resident of Mumbai, who is now believed to be in Syria, was influenced by the speeches of Naik.
Including Ayaz, four youth went missing last year. Arib Majid, one of them who came back to India, said that Naik's speeches had influenced him to join the ISIS.
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The current investigation is based on allegations that the recent terror attack in Dhaka could have been prompted by Naik's speeches. Naik, who is now in Saudi Arabia, is to return to India in a day. He had clarified that he had neither spoken in favor of, nor supported terrorism.
The Mumbai police have, meanwhile, set up a special wing to probe the issue. The focus of the unit would be on speeches that incite as well as the source of income of charitable organizations. Officials of the cyber cell would analyze Naik's speeches, books and other material meant for public consumption.
While Naik's Peace TV is banned in India, some operators are providing the service, prompting the central government to investigate cable operators that air channels that are banned. The IB said that about 24 banned channels are available in different parts of India. Of these, 11 are aired from Pakistan. Orders have also been issued to remove Naik's channels from Youtube.
Satyapal Singh said that the organization, Islamic Research Foundation, which is controlled by Naik, should have been closed long ago. He said that the organization came under the scanner of investigative agencies following a program in which 12 people were converted to another religion. The program was hosted using money from foreign sources.
Meanwhile, the Jamaat-e-Islami Kerala Amir M I Abdul Aziz said that it was shocking that some youth from Kerala had allegedly joined the ISIS. He said that state and central governments should probe agencies that were reportedly recruiting such people for the ISIS. He said that ISIS is a terrorist organization and its ideologies are opposite to what Islam preaches.
