PM Modi didn't ask for Zakir Naik's extradition when I met him, claims Malaysian PM Mahathir Mohamad
"Not many countries want Zakir Naik. India has not insisted. I met Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he did not ask me that he wants this man back. This man could be troublesome for India," Mahathir said in an interview with Malaysian radio station BFM's show, the Breakfast Grille.
Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad on Tuesday rejected the claim that his Indian counterpart PM Narendra Modi had asked for controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik to be extradited to India.
"Not many countries want him (Naik). India has not insisted. I met Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he did not ask me that he wants this man back. This man could be troublesome for India," Mahathir said in an interview with Malaysian radio station BFM's show, the Breakfast Grille.
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Modi had met Mahathir Mohamad on the sidelines of the 5th East Economic Forum in Russia's Far Eastern city early this month. Following their meeting, Indian Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale had said that the two leaders discussed the extradition of Naik.
"Prime Minister Modi raised the issue of Zakir Naik's extradition. Both the parties have decided that our officials will stay in contact regarding the matter and it is an important issue for us," Gokhale had said then.
The controversial Islamic preacher was banned from public speaking in Malaysia after his response to calls for his own deportation. Zakir Naik — during a religious talk titled "Executive Talk Bersama Dr Zakir Naik" — had asked the Malaysian Chinese to "go back" first as they were the "old guests" of the country.
His speech was condemned by many parties after he compared the Hindus in Malaysia with Muslims in India, saying that the Hindus here enjoyed more than 100 percent rights as compared to Muslims in India.