Saturday, 20 May 2017 | MYT 12:07 PM
PETALING JAYA: Saudi Arabia has granted citizenship to controversial preacher Dr Zakir Naik (pic), who has an Interpol Red Notice on him calling for his arrest.
Dr Zakir is a wanted man in India for allegedly financing terror activities and money-laundering.
According to the Middle East Monitor, the 51-year-old preacher left India last year in an apparent bid to evade arrest.
This was after some of those involved in the Dhaka terror attack, which saw people hacked to death, claimed that they were inspired by him.
Indian enforcement officials have revoked Dr Zakir's passport and approached Interpol to issue a Red Notice, which requests member nations to locate and provisionally arrest an individual pending extradition.
The Middle East Monitor reported that Dr Zakir, who was in Saudi Arabia, would be forced to return to India if his passport was revoked.
The portal said the Mumbai passport office did not appear to have anticipated Saudi Arabia granting citizenship to him and moved to revoke his passport while a special court sent out an arrest warrant for him.
Dr Zakir was denied entry into Canada and the United Kingdom in 2012 after reportedly expressing support for terrorist group Al-Qaeda.
Peace TV, his television channel, has also been banned in Bangladesh, Canada and in the United Kingdom.
However, it recently came to light that he was given Permanent Resident (PR) status in Malaysia five years ago.
Dr Zakir's recent presence in Malaysia had ruffled the feathers of MIC Youth, which has lodged multiple police reports against him.
