Controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik, who is wanted in India for promoting hate and extremism, has been seen meeting members of the terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) during his stay in Pakistan. Naik arrived in Pakistan on September 30 for a month-long visit as a state guest. During his visit, he met LeT commander Muzammil Iqbal Hashmi, along with Muhammad Harris Dhar and Faisal Nadeem, all of whom were declared ‘international’ terrorists by the US in 2008.
Verified footage obtained by India Today shows Naik embracing Hashmi and other LeT terrorists at Lahore’s Badshahi Mosque, where he addressed a gathering of more than 150,000 people under tight security by Lahore police.
Naik’s status as a state guest, a privilege typically reserved for prominent foreign dignitaries, has raised serious concerns internationally, with India condemning the visit. The Lashkar-e-Taiba is notorious for several terror attacks, including the 2008 Mumbai attacks.
In the lead-up to the event at the mosque, LeT members, including Faisal Nadeem and Muzammil Hashmi, led an online campaign promoting Naik’s visit.
Muhammad Harris Dhar, one of Naik’s associates, had previously made headlines earlier this year when he was seen meeting with Pakistan’s Olympic gold medalist Arshad Nadeem.
Zakir Naik has been living in Malaysia since 2016, after India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) filed a case against him under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and other sections of the Indian Penal Code (now Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita). The NIA’s actions were triggered after the Dhaka terror attack in July 2016, where one of the attackers claimed he was influenced by Naik’s speeches on YouTube.