NEW DELHI, July 6 - The government today indicated taking action against a controversial Indian Islamic preacher, who was followed by one of the five Bangladeshi militants, who killed 22 people at a restaurant in Dhaka.
�Zakir Nayek�s speech is a matter of concern for us. Our agencies are working on this. But as a minister, I will not comment what action will be taken,� Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju told reporters here.
Rijiju said India has good relations and mutual understanding with Bangladesh, especially in the matter of cooperation on fighting terrorism. �Terror can be defeated only through close coordination and by fighting together (against it),� he said.
Bangladeshi newspaper Daily Star had reported that militant Rohan Imtiaz, son of an Awami League leader, ran a propaganda on Facebook last year quoting Nayek.
Nayek, in his lecture aired on Peace TV, an international Islamic channel, had reportedly �urged all Muslims to be terrorists�.
Nayek, a popular but controversial Islamic orator and founder of Mumbai-based Islamic Research Foundation, is banned in the UK and Canada for his hate speech aimed against other religions. He is among 16 banned Islamic scholars in Malaysia.
He is hugely popular in Bangladesh through his Peace TV, although his preachings often demean other religions and even other Muslim sects, the report said. � PTI
