Zakir Abdul Karim Naik (Urdu: ذاکر عبدالکریم نائیک; born 18 October 1965) is the founder and president of the Islamic Research Foundation (IRF), which is a non-profit organization that owns Peace TV channel based in Mumbai, India. A prominent Muslim figure in the Muslim world, Naik is also a public speaker and a writer on the subject of Islam and other comparative religion.
Naik originally began his career as a medical doctor, having attained a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery (MBBS) from the University of Mumbai. After being inspired by Ahmed Deedat, Naik began part-time and later switching to a full-time career by giving Islamic speeches to the public.
Biography
Zakir Abdul Karim Naik was born on 18 October 1965 in
Mumbai, India. He attended St. Peter's High School (
ICSE) in the city of Mumbai. Later he joined the
Kishinchand Chellaram College and then studied medicine at
Topiwala National Medical College and Nair Hospital in his native city and received his
MBBS degree from the
University of Mumbai. In 1991 he started working in the field of
Da'wah Islam.
Naik says he was inspired by the late Ahmed Deedat, who had been active in the field of Da'wah for more than 50 years.
According to Naik, his goal is to "concentrate on the educated Muslim youth who have become apologetic about their own religion and have started to feel the religion is outdated",
He considers it a duty of every Muslim to remove perceived misconceptions about Islam, to counter what he views as the Western media's anti-Islamic bias in the aftermath of September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks upon the United States. Some of his articles are also published in magazines like the Islamic Voice.
Anthropologist Thomas Blom Hansen has written Topics he speaks on include: "Islam and Modern Science", "Islam and Christianity", and "Islam and secularism".
Apart from IRF, Naik is also the founder and chairman of the Islamic International School (IIS), Mumbai. He is also the founder of Peace TV Network.
Lectures and debates
Naik has held many debates and lectures around the world as well as in Mumbai, India. One of Naik's most cited debates took place in
Chicago in April, 2000 featuring
William Campbell of Pennsylvania, USA on the topic "The Qur'an and the Bible: In the Light of Science".
Naik also stated that "despite the strident anti-Islam campaign, 34,000 Americans have embraced Islam from September 2001 to July 2002." He cited an article by Edward Said published in the Time magazine, which said that 60,000 books about Islam and the Orient have been written between 1800 and 1950 alone.
In a lecture at Melbourne University, Naik argued that only Islam gave women true equality.
He stressed the importance of the headscarf by arguing that the more "revealing Western dress" makes women more susceptible to rape.
On 21 January 2006, Naik held an inter-religious dialogue with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar. The event was about the concept of God in Islam and Hinduism, the aim being to bring understanding between the two major religions of India, and at best to point out the commonalities between them. It was held in Bangalore, India with up to 50,000 attending at the Palace Grounds.
In a lecture delivered on 31 July 2008 on Peace TV, Naik stated, regarding 9/11: "it is a blatant, open secret that this attack on the Twin Towers was done by George Bush himself", to give Bush reason to attack and control oil-rich countries.
On 7 March 2010 Naik participated in a live discussion with Soha Ali Khan and others on a TV show We The People on NDTV.
Peace conferences
Every year since November 2007, Naik has lead a 10-day "Peace Conference" at Somaiya Ground,
Sion, Mumbai. Lectures on Islam have been presented by Naik as well as twenty other
Islamic scholars from around the world.
Another prominent personality was the
Malaysian politician,
Anwar Ibrahim in 2008.
During one of the lectures at the Peace Conference, Naik provoked anger among members of the Shia and Sunni communities, when he mentioned the words "Radiallah ta'la anho" (meaning 'May Allah be pleased with him') after mentioning the name of Yazid I and made remarks that the battle of Karbala was political. Others, however, believed the comment was blown out of proportion.
In November 2009, the IRF organized a 10-day international Islamic conference and exhibition titled 'Peace – the solution for humanity' at the Somaiya grounds in Mumbai. Lectures on Islam were presented by Naik as well as thirty other Islamic scholars from around the world.
Writings
In 2007, the
Saudi publishing house,
Dar-us-Salam Publications, published two titles written by Naik, entitled "
The Concept of God in Major Religions" and "
The Qur'an and Modern Science: Compatible or Incompatible?".
Criticism and controversy
On the issue of the theory of
evolution, Naik commented that it contradicts
Islam since it remains "just a theory and not a fact". According to Naik, scientists "support the theory, because it went against the
Bible – not because it was true." According to Naik, there are hundreds of scientists and
Nobel Prize winners who speak against
Darwin's theory.
In 2004, Naik visited New Zealand and then the Australian capital at the invitation of Islamic Information and Services Network of Australasia. At his conference in Melbourne, senior Age writer and columnist Sushi Das commented that "Naik extolled the moral and spiritual superiority of Islam and lampooned other faiths and the West in general", further criticizing that Naik's words "fostered a spirit of separateness and reinforced prejudice".
In August 2006, Naik's visit and conference in Cardiff (UK) were the object of controversy, when Welsh MP David Davies called for his appearance to be cancelled. He argued that Naik was a 'hate-monger', and said his views did not deserve a 'public platform'; Muslims from Cardiff, however, defended Naik's right to speak in their city. Saleem Kidwai, Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Wales, disagreed with Davies, stating that "people who know about him (Naik) know that he is one of the most uncontroversial persons you could find. He talks about the similarities between religions, and how should we work on the common ground between them", whilst also inviting Davies to discuss further with Naik personally in the conference. The conference went ahead, after the Cardiff council stated it was satisfied that he would not be preaching extremist views.
Khushwant Singh, a prominent Indian journalist, politician and author argues that Naik's pronouncements are "juvenile" and said that "they seldom rise above the level of undergraduate college debates, where contestants vie with each other to score brownie points". Singh disagreed with Naik's statement that "Western society claims to have uplifted women. On the contrary, it has actually degraded them to the status of concubines, mistresses, and society butterflies who are mere tools in the hands of pleasure seekers and sex marketers". Singh wrote: "Dr. Naik, you know next to nothing about the Western society and are talking through your skull cap. People like you are making the Muslims lag behind other communities." Singh also noted that Naik's audiences "listen to him with rapt attention and often explode in enthusiastic applause when he rubbishes other religious texts".
Fatwas
In August 2008,
Darul Uloom Deoband issued a
fatwa stating: "The statements made by Dr Zakir Naik indicate that he is a preacher of
Ghair Muqallidin. One should not rely upon his speeches.".
The Shariah Board of America has also issued more than 20 fatwas against Naik on their website. They believe Naik has gone astray, as he is not a scholar and issues Islamic teachings without authority or any knowledge to do so, which is dangerous to Islam; "Naik is known for discussions on comparative religions. He is not a qualified Aalim of deen. His comments on fiqh have no merit. If it is true that he condemned the fiqh of the Imams, then that in itself is a clear indication of his lack of fiqh and understanding of Shariah. We have come across a fatwa from Darul Ifta Jamia Binnoria, Pakistan regarding Zakir Naik not being a certified Aalim of Deen. He should consult with Ulama in his endeavor of propagating deen."
In November 2008 the Lucknow-based cleric Abul Irfan Mian Firangi Mahali issued a fatwa against Naik, describing Naik as a "Kafir" (non-believer) and stating in the fatwa, that Naik should be ex-communicated from Islam. He argued that "Naik is not an Islamic scholar. His teachings are against the Quran. In his speeches, he insults Allah and glorifies Yazeed, the killer of Imam Hussain", and that Naik had supported Osama bin Laden and called upon all Muslims to become terrorists. Naik, however, said that his speeches had been misquoted and that he was allegedly targeted by people with vested interests and said of the fatwa: "fatwas mean nothing. They should also issue fatwas against Imam Bukhari. Some clerics who have limited understanding of Islam are doing these things. It doesn't affect me". The All-India Sunni Board and Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jilani Foundation have also defended Naik.
Views on apostasy
Naik has stated that any Muslim is free to convert out of Islam if the person so chooses, but added that if a Muslim converts and then speaks against Islam it should be considered as
treason. Naik stated that under Islamic law this is punishable by death.
During a question and answer session at Naik's lecture on May 29 on the Maldives, a 37-year old Maldivian citizen named Mohamed Nazim stood up and announced that he was struggling to believe in any religion and did not consider himself to be a Muslim. Nazim further asked what Naik's verdict would be under Islam and in the Maldives. Dr Naik responded that he considers the punishment for apostasy does not necessarily mean death, since Muhammed was reported in the Hadith scriptures on some occasion to have shown clemency towards apostates, but added that if a Muslim apostate speaks and propagates against Islam under Islamic Shari’a rule then the apostate should be put to death.
Views on homosexuality
During a 16 October, 2006 lecture, Naik said that "one-third of New York are gays" and that homosexuality is "a problem" in the United States.
Views on terrorism
Naik's views and statements on terrorism have at times been criticised in the media and by the
United Kingdom Home Secretary. In a
YouTube video speaking of
Osama bin Laden, Naik said that he would not criticise bin Laden because he had not met him and did not know him personally. He added: "If he is fighting the enemies of Islam, I am for him. If he is terrorizing the terrorists, America, the biggest terrorist, I am with him. Every Muslim should be a terrorist. ... A terrorist is a person who causes terror. The moment a robber sees a policeman he is terrified. A policeman is a terrorist for the robber. Similarly every Muslim should be a terrorist for the antisocial elements of society, such as thieves, dacoits and rapists. Whenever such an anti-social element sees a Muslim, he should be terrified. It is true that the word ‘terrorist’ is generally used for a person who causes terror among the common people. But a true Muslim should only be a terrorist to selective people i.e. anti-social elements, and not to the common innocent people. In fact a Muslim should be a source of peace for innocent people." This evoked strong criticism from Hindus in general and Arya Samaj in particular, who consider Vedas to be
revealed texts. Because Naik claimed to have defeated
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar in a debate, he was challenged to debate
Arya Samaj on this issue. After he refused to officially respond, a detailed rebuttal of Naik's views along with the details of communications with IRF was made online by Arya Samaj.
2010 exclusion from the UK and Canada
Naik has been denied entry into the
United Kingdom and Canada since June 2010. He was
banned by the
Home Secretary Theresa May. He had arranged to give talks in London and
Sheffield. May said of the
exclusion order regarding Naik, "Numerous comments made by Dr Naik are evidence to me of his unacceptable behavior". She noted statements from Naik such as, "every
Muslim should be a
terrorist". Naik's full quote is: "Every Muslim should be a terrorist. A terrorist is a person who causes terror. The moment a
robber sees a
policeman he is terrified. A policeman is a terrorist for the robber. Similarly every Muslim should be a terrorist for the antisocial elements of society, such as
thieves,
dacoits and
rapists".
Naik believed that the Home secretary was making a "political decision and not a legal one". It was reported that Naik would attempt to challenge the ruling in the High court. His application for judicial review was dismissed on 5 November 2010.
Influence as revealed by published newspaper rankings
On 31 January 2010, the
Sunday Express published The
Indian Express list of the “100 Most Powerful Indians in 2010”. It ranked Naik at 89. Of the Muslims in this list, Naik was the only Islamic preacher. The other Muslims were a political secretary, a politician, a government official, a
business magnate and three film personalities. He was the third most influential religious figure listed in 2009, whereas in 2010 he rose to become the highest placed religious leader at No. 89 followed by
Jaggi Vasudev at 94,
Baba Ramdev at 99 and
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar at 100.
References
External links
Islamic Research Foundation (official website)
Peace TV (official website)
Articles and Answers of Zakir Naik
Here’s Zakir Naik, ‘Fundamentalist, not Fanatic’ Mumbai Newsline
Correct Islamic Faith International Association
Second opinion: Zakir Naik’s ‘reverse orientalism’ —Khaled Ahmed’s TV Review
Response of Arya Samaj to Zakir Naik's views on Hinduism
Official Peace Conference Website
Zakir Naik Exlusion Official Website
Category:1965 births
Category:Living people
Category:Muslim scholars
Category:Indian Muslims
Category:Muslim apologists
Category:Konkani Muslims
Category:People from Mumbai
Category:Indian religious leaders
Category:University of Mumbai alumni
Category:Personae non gratae
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