Does comparing one religion to other religions bring “harmony” or “harm” to a multi-religious society… such as in Malaysia?
Renowned India-born Muslim preacher Dr Zakir Naik appears to be back among the news headlines again after a long hiatus; this is after it was reported last Thursday (Feb 6) that he had recently delivered a ceramah in Perlis with prior approval from the state mufti - despite a widely believed public speaking “ban” on him.
Incidentally, in 2019, Al-Jazeera had reported how the controversial preacher had sparked an uproar in the country after allegedly claiming that Hindus here had “100 times more rights” than the Muslim minority in India, and that they supported the “prime minister of India and not the prime minister of Malaysia!”
According to the same report, Dr Zakir had also taken aim at the country’s Chinese community, when addressing calls for him to leave the country, allegedly saying the ethnic minority should leave first as they were “guests” here!
He was reportedly granted permanent residency in Malaysia by the previous BN government under Najib Razak; then subsequently during the first Pakatan Harapan administration (2018-2020) no less than four cabinet ministers were said to have publicly urged the then-PM Dr Mahathir to deport the preacher to India for allegedly uttering inflammatory remarks.
Meanwhile, last August, PM Anwar Ibrahim had said he was not willing to consider extraditing Dr Zakir to India as long as the controversial preacher did not cause any problems here.
In an interview with India Today Global, Anwar had reportedly said: “We do appreciate the concern, but I think as long as Dr Zakir does not create issues between Malaysia and India and the security of the nation, we will let the matter rest.”
Note: The preacher is reportedly wanted by the Indian authorities since 2016 for alleged money laundering and “inciting” extremism through hate speech.
He had further pointed out that Dr Zakir, who travelled abroad and returned to Malaysia occasionally, had not been “active” in the country lately.
Dr Zakir had also made headlines in Nov 2023, after ex-Penang Deputy Chief Minister II P. Ramasamy was ordered to pay more than RM1mil in damages for defaming him; this was after the judge had ruled that the statements issued by the latter were deemed to be personal attacks aimed at disparaging, ridiculing and lowering the preacher in the eyes of the general public.
For the record, the impugned statements were reportedly made through the article “Is Malaysia harbouring alleged fugitive Zakir Naik?” published by an online news website in 2017, while another was through an article entitled “Naik should not question the loyalty of Hindus in Malaysia”, also carried by the same website in 2019; Ramasamy was also sued for a video interview and an article in another news website (both in 2019) as well as a post in his Facebook in 2016.
While the latest controversy implicating the preacher has sparked fresh concerns whether he had violated the alleged speaking ban imposed on him, the bigger question seemed to be: does the state mufti actually have the authority to “uplift” the ban on the grounds that religious matters are deemed to be under individual state jurisdiction?
Significantly, it had also raised another contentious issue relating to speeches and discussions on the study of “comparative religions” of which Dr Zakir is reportedly a self-taught expert; within the context of this multiethnic and multi-religious nation where race and religion are such highly combustible topics, is it morally correct to grant anyone (including politicians) the right to comment freely on religions other than his or her own? The truth is, given that religion entails a “spiritual connection” involving the believer and his Creator, can anyone conclusively claim that he or she is an “authority” on it merely by having acquired an “intellectual” understanding of it?
Credits: Malaysiakini, Al-Jazeera, FMT, The Star and The Edge Malaysia
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