Why Zakir Naik might feel at home in Pakistan

New Delhi,UPDATED: Oct 2, 2024 17:09 IST

As radical Islamic preacher Zakir Naik walked out of Islamabad Airport earlier this week, the Pakistan government rolled out the red carpet. Naik, wanted in India, was welcomed in Pakistan with bouquets, hand-kisses, and warm smiles. It sparked massive criticism in India as he was received by officials from the Ministry of Religious Affairs and PM Shehbaz Sharif’s aide Rana Mashhood.

Naik, who is wanted in India on charges of hate speech and inciting communal disharmony, and currently lives in Malaysia, was welcomed with open arms by the Pakistani government. Naik is, in fact, visiting Pakistan at the special invitation of the government, reported Pakistan Today.

The Pakistan government's invitation to Zakir Naik highlighted the symbiotic relationship between the Pakistani state and controversial people.

However, this is the closest Zakir Naik, who has been away from India for 8 years, will feel at home. He fled the country in 2016 after the Investigation Agency (NIA) initiated a probe against him.

ZAKIR NAIK'S PAKISTAN TOUR OF 2024

Zakir Naik landed in Islamabad on Monday to commence his 15-day visit, although a Dawn report suggested his stay with foolproof security and protocol could extend up to a month.

The visit is his first to Pakistan in over three decades, with the last being in 1992 when he met Sharia-preaching Islamic scholar Israr Ahmed, who notoriously put forward conspiracy theories about India and Israel.

Naik, during the tour, will be delivering public lectures in Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad. He is accompanied by his son, Fariq Naik, also an Islamic preacher, for the Pakistan tour.

The government of Pakistan has assured foolproof security for Zakir Naik during his stay, reported Dawn.

CONTROVERSY AND QUESTIONS SURROUNDING ZAKIR NAIK'S PAKISTAN TOUR

Naik's arrival in Pakistan has not been without controversy. The 'welcome' of the radical wanted in India for money laundering and hate speech prompted many, including author and columnist Omer Ghazi, to criticise the move, arguing that Pakistan's decision to host him aligns with the nation being built on "intolerance, bigotry, corruption, and radical extremism".

"Pakistan rolling out the red carpet for Zakir Naik makes complete sense. When you have created a nation on intolerance, bigotry, corruption and radical extremism, why not invite a professional who is an expert on all of the above," he added.

Reacting to the report of Pakistan hosting Zakir Naik and the intent of the establishment-backed government, former Indian diplomat Kanwal Sibal noted that the invitation and the subsequent visit serves as a lesson for those advocating any diplomatic engagement with Pakistan.

"There is a lesson in this invitation to Zakir Naik for those who advocate some diplomatic opening towards Pakistan, be it in sports, trade etc... Not a discourse intended to lower tensions with India. Shehbaz [Sharif] may get 'shabash' domestically, but it won't improve Pakistan's condition...," added Kanwal Sibal, who is the current chancellor of New Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU).

PAKISTAN'S PROBLEMATIC POSTURE ON RADICALISM

Pakistan was found on religious lines. Although Mohammed Ali Jinnah's historical speech of "You are free to go to your temples, you are free to go to your mosques" is cited by many for being "secular", his remarks before and after that reveal that the words were actually hollow.

Then, of course, came the Islamic doctorisation of Zia-ul-Haq in the 1970s and 1980s, which has continued to this day. So much was the hatred for anything Indian and Hindu, that Pakistan under Zia-ul-Haq banned the sari for government officials and in colleges.

Former Prime Minister Imran Khan's inclination to "Islamic touch" is a well-known fact.

The country's history, politics and society have been dominated by two Ms - mullahs (clerics) and the military.

"The alliance between the mullah and the military is another interesting facet of Pakistan politics which has let the Islamist constituency survive and grow in strength and stature over time," writes Ashok Kumar Behuria, a senior fellow at New Delhi's Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses.

So, Zakir Naik fits comfortably in that culture.

Since Zakir Naik fled in 2016, he has been staying in Malaysia and visiting several countries, but far from India.

In his first visit to Pakistan since being declared a fugitive in India, he will get to be in the subcontinent among people who can understand his tongue even if he deviates from English. He will also be among people who look like him. Combined with the culture of clerics, Zakir Naik might feel at home in Pakistan.