Fugitive Zakir Naik was ‘misleading’ Indian Muslims on Waqf Bill, Union Minister Rijiju reprimanded him/her

New Delhi :Union Minister Kiren Rijiju has responded to Zakir Naik, who tried to provoke and mislead Indian Muslims from foreign soil regarding the Waqf Amendment Bill. he/she has accused fugitive Islamic preacher Zakir Naik of spreading false propaganda and misleading Indian Muslims regarding the Waqf Amendment Bill. Zakir Naik is wanted in India on charges of money laundering and hate speeches and has been out of the country since 2016. Rijiju has described Naik’s online post as misleading and false propaganda. he/she said, ‘Please do not mislead innocent Muslims from outside our country. India is a democratic country and people have the right to express their opinion. False narratives are created by misinformation.’

In his/her post, Naik had called the proposed law dangerous and appealed to Muslims to convey their disagreement to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) examining the bill. The fugitive, wanted in India, shared a QR code and a link to an online petition, saying that at least 50 lakh Indian Muslims should send their disapproval to the JPC by September 13.

The Waqf Amendment Bill proposes changes to the existing law on 44 points. This includes the inclusion of two non-Muslim persons, a Union minister, three MPs and senior IAS officers in the Waqf Board. According to the Waqf Amendment Bill, women will also have to be included in the Waqf Board.

Opposition parties have criticised the bill as draconian, but the government says it will bring transparency and benefit women and children by protecting their inheritance. According to the amendments, the funds received by the Wakf Board will have to be used for the welfare of widows, divorced women and orphans as suggested by the government.

Rijiju had earlier said in Parliament that the Waqf Board had been taken over by “some people” and the bill had been brought to provide justice to common Muslims.