Asri: Prove Zakir's faults or bury the hatchet

Perlis mufti Asri Zainul Abidin has challenged those opposing Indian national Islamic preacher Zakir Naik to prove his faults. 

Otherwise, he said, both Muslims and Hindus in Malaysia should bury the hatchet and opt for a harmonious relationship.

"I hope all quarters will stop the race and religious provocaions in the Zakir Naik issue and other matters.

"Those dissatisfied with Zakir's approach can reveal evidence of his speeches in Malaysia which led to religious tensions and if this is proven, I, too, will protest (against him)...

"If not, let's bring calm to the situation by extending a hand to each other in harmony, despite differing religions," he said in a statement today. 

He said this method is better than "the Hindraf way of making claims without acceptable evidence".

He also reiterated that his poem, which condemns "cow worshippers", the caste system and the now-defunct widow torching practice, was meant to criticise India and not Hindus in Malaysia.

"Even so, I apologised to all who are not involved in Hindraf who were offended by the poem; all for the sake of good relations regardless of religion," he said.  

He added that Prophet Muhammad stressed the importance of good relations with those of other religions and justice for all regardless of their beliefs, ethnicity and creed. 

Similarly, he said, Hindu figures like Mahatma Gandhi and S Sambanthan all favoured the path of peace, he said. 

Zakir has been accused of critics of straining ties between followers of different religions through his talks which compare Islam with other faiths.

Police barred his talk to compare Islam and Hinduism in Kuala Lumpur, fearing inter-religious strife. 

He is reported to have convinced many non-Muslims to embrace Islam, many of whom do so at his talks. The same occured at his numerous events in Malaysia.

A Malaysian permanent resident, he is lauded by many Muslims as an expert in comparative religions and was awarded the Tokoh Maal Hijrah in 2013. 

Zakir is wanted in India for alleged money-laundering, and is accused of encouraging radical Islam after one of the perpetrators in the Dhaka terrorist attacks last year was reported to be follower of his teachings.

He has denied the charges, and fears that he will be tortured by Indian investigators if he is to return to give his statement there. He is reported to be based in Saudi Arabia.- Mkini