“If Dr Zakir ends up being extradited to India, PMX would essentially be digging his own political grave. 🙂”
Such was the instant reaction to a one-liner revelation by political influencer Khairul Azri that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had confirmed discussions with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi in New Delhi regarding the extradition of the controversial Islamist preacher Dr Zakir Naik to his homeland, India.
Apparently, PMX who was on a five-day working visit to India/Maldives for the BRICS Summit 2026 has confirmed to India’s NDTV (New Delhi Television) over the weekend (Sept 12) that the issue of extradition of fugitive Islamic preacher Zakir Naik was pursued in private instead of being brought up at official level.
“We thought we should keep it very private to protect the interests of both nations. But we, of course, put it on the priority list for building trust and relationship between our countries,” the Pakatan Harapan (PH) chairman had told NDTV.
“We have some understanding of it (extradition demand) but we need to do it very cautiously. Respect the rule of law and the importance of these bilateral relations.”
Interestingly, the seemingly rightist/pro-opposition fraternity who revered Zakir for his profound Islamic knowledge were further wary of PMX’s track record of easily “yielding to external authorities such as with the ART (Malaysia-US Agreement on Reciprocal Trade) tariff agreement”.
‘Over our dead body’
Another questioned if PMX “ever has the heart to send a fellow Muslim brethren to be slaughtered” while one commenter mocked that “this is what Malay PH voters desire”.
Educator and cartoonist Yusuf Yaacub clarified that PMX rejected India’s advances “in a diplomatic language” with one remarking that “if PMX is a leader who is brave and firm in looking after the rakyat, he could have simply rejected that motion”.
“There is no need for discussion as ZN (Zakir Naik) has already obtained permanent residency (PR) status in Malaysia, hence has become part of the Malaysian populace.”
In another similar FB post by self-proclaimed lawyer, singer and professional magician AMAR, one commenter hit out at Modi for being “truly anti-Islam for he allows and encourages the massacre of Muslims in India” with Indian freelance emcee Dr. M.A Lingkesvaran Maniam rebutting “Zakir Naik is anti-Hindu, so tally lah”.
As one commenter likened India to Israel, another wondered if PMX can be considered “a traitor of his religion” should he surrender a brethren who indulges in dakwah work to a perceived enemy of Islam.
“It’s a duty for Muslims to wage jihad to defend and protect Dr Zakir. We’re unable to do what the Holy Prophet and his companions did in conveying the truth of Islam but Dr Zakir can. Therefore, it is obligatory for us to protect him,” deducesd one commenter.
This is when another recounted that New Delhi’s request for an Interpol Red Notice against Zakir had been rejected thrice previously because they failed to meet the necessary requirements.
“In other words, they were baseless. The Indian government is treating Dr Zakir Naik unjustly.”
At the end of the day, one commenter claimed that instead of extraditing Zakir to India, it wound be better off “to deport this ‘6%’ if they don’t stop making life difficult for all the races in Malaysia”.
“… Even if you keep demanding Dr Zakir (extradition) for a million years, we’ll not let him go!” he insisted. – Sept 15, 2026
Main image credit: AMAR/Facebook
