Agency officials raid 12 premises of Zakir Naik, seize documents, CDs, and hard drives from 50-60 boxes
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) continued its search operations on the premises of the Zakir Naik-run Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) and associate organisations in Mumbai even on Sunday night. The operation started on Saturday morning, with the NIA raiding 12 of the Islamic preacher's premises.
The NIA will also examine the funding aspects of the Islamic International School (IIS). The decision to probe the funding of the school, run by the IRF Educational Trust, came soon after the NIA booked the Islamic preacher on charges of terrorism.
The IIS, whose bank accounts were frozen by the Maharashtra government this week, has branches in Mumbai and Chennai, and has 254 students. "We are looking into the financial records of the IRF that were recovered during the raids on Saturday. The education wing of the IRF will also fall under the domain of our investigation if transactions are found to have been taken place," said an NIA source. Though the websites of the schools as well as the IRF have been blocked, their Facebook pages are still functional.
On Saturday, the NIA had filed an FIR against the controversial televangelist under Sections of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).
The NIA's team of four Information Technology (IT) experts recovered a lot of data from the office of Harmony Media, the production company of Naik, which provides content to his Peace TV, in Dongri, on Sunday.
According to an NIA official, "We have seized documents, CDs, hard discs and hard drives in about 50-60 boxes. This material will be taken to the NIA office for further investigation." According to a police source, "There is a possibility that all offices of the IRF would be sealed."
On IIS, NIA officials said that the education institute itself is not under investigation, but since the school is run by the IRF Educational Trust, they will probe the funds that IIS has received over the last few years. IIS runs classes from kindergarten to Standard X and offers all main subjects, with Islamic studies as an addition.
Imran Qureshi, principal of the school's Mumbai branch, while speaking to DNA said that the institution has been "unnecessarily involved" in the probe and the students will suffer. "We are not teaching students anything bad here. We have a very good faculty teaching Maths, Science and Islamic Studies too are a part of our syllabus,"said Qureshi.
Meanwhile,Islamist group Jamaat-e-Islami Hind JeIH) on Sunday defended Naik and termed the case against him as a "witch-hunt to silence the voice of all who exercise their Constitutional rights to profess and propagate religion". The Secretary General of Jamaat, Muhammad Saleem Engineer of JeIH, said the Bangladeshi newspaper, which blamed Naik for inspiring terrorists, had retracted its report later.
Investigating agencies are now planning to contact Naik to cooperate with the probe. Naik is said to be in Thailand now.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Zakir Naik")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}