SC dismisses as withdrawn Zakir Naik's plea to club hate speech FIRs

New Delhi, Oct 23 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed as withdrawn fugitive radical preacher Zakir Naik's plea, seeking clubbing of multiple hate speech cases registered against him in the past.

A bench, headed by Justice Abhay S. Oka, allowed the withdrawal of the plea filed in 2013 with the liberty to file appropriate proceedings before an alternative forum for the relief.

In an earlier hearing, the Maharashtra government had urged the top court not to entertain Naik’s petition.

"A person who is declared a fugitive by the court of law, how can he maintain an Article 32 petition?" argued Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta.

SG Mehta said that Zakir Naik, a fugitive, cannot sign his "defective" petition and the state government was unable to file a counter affidavit for want of removal of defects.

Permitting the filing of a counter affidavit before the next date of listing, the apex court had specifically asked Naik’s advocate to seek instructions if the Islamic preacher wished to press the reliefs contained in the petition or would like to withdraw his plea.

Naik, a controversial religious figure, is wanted by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for his involvement in unlawful activities and promoting religious hatred. In 2017, Bangladesh authorities claimed that one of those who attacked a Dhaka cafe, leaving 22 dead, was inspired by Naik. Later that year, India's NIA also accused Naik of indulging in unlawful activities and promoting religious hatred. Since then, Naik has been living in Malaysia, a country that has given him protection and allowed him to operate his organisation, including Dubai-based Peace TV and Mumbai-based non-profit Islamic Research Foundation (IRF).

A Tribunal under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) had confirmed the notification dated November 15, 2021, issued by the Central government declaring Naik's IRF as an unlawful association. The Tribunal said that after going through the evidence, there were sufficient causes for imposing the ban on IRF as its unlawful activities, through various mediums, are detrimental to the sovereignty, unity, integrity, and security of India and cause disaffection against India. Naik fled from the country in 2016 and is wanted by the Indian probe agencies on the charges of terror financing, hate speeches, money laundering and inciting communal disharmony.