Radical Islamic Preacher Zakir Naik Lands in Pakistan to Deliver Lectures in Major Cities

Islamabad: Radical Islamic preacher Zakir Naik has arrived in Pakistan for his series of lectures in several major cities. He was welcomed by senior officials from the Ministry of Religious Affairs upon his arrival in Islamabad. Naik's tour will include stops in several major cities, including Karachi and Lahore, concluding with a lecture in Islamabad on October 20.

The Indian-born preacher announced his trip through his social media accounts, where he shared details of the public lectures he will deliver. Naik is set to begin his tour on October 5, starting with Karachi, followed by Lahore, and finishing in Islamabad.

A report in The Express Tribune, quoting a spokesperson from the Ministry of Religious Affairs, stated that Naik has arrived in Pakistan for a visit that will last until October 28. During his stay, he will deliver public speeches in Islamabad, Karachi, and Lahore, and will also lead and address Friday prayer congregations.

Earlier on Monday, Zakir Naik took to X (formerly Twitter) and shared a video explaining why he has reduced the frequency of his public lectures. He said, "If you count the number of people in public talks, the attendance has increased every year. Earlier, if I went to a city and spent five days giving maybe 15 talks, or spent two weeks and gave 20 talks, now I go to a country and give talks only on the weekends. But the number of people attending those two talks is much more than ten talks put together. That's one reason, but it's not the only one."

"If you count the number of people in public talks, every year increased. Means if I gave, I went to a city and spent five days and gave maybe 15 talks, or spent two weeks and gave 20 talks. Now I go to a country, I give talks only on the weekends. But the number of people coming for the talks, for those two talks, are much more than ten talks put together. That's number one. But that's not the only thing."

He further explained how media and social media have expanded his reach: “We also record this on the media, and when it goes on the social media, the social media people watch to a larger number, on social media and on the satellite channel. So when we started the satellite channel in 2006, our main focus was see to it that programs on the satellite channels are good. So my talks became less, but the reach became more.”

Naik also spoke about missing the peace conference he used to hold in India, particularly in Mumbai. He said, "The peace conference is something what I miss the most, since I have left India, especially Bombay. The thing that I miss the most, besides my family, that is my parents, brothers and sisters, the thing that I really missed in terms of Dawah, is the peace conference. Other things, but the peace conference, the way we used to have in Bombay, you know we had for many years, and the audience used to be hundreds of thousands in one sitting, over ten years about a million people, you know the audience is coming in large numbers, 30, more than 30 speakers coming from different parts of the world, this, this we missed."

He added, “I was hoping to have this, and I spoke to a few people about which is the best place to have it, you know which country would be the best, and unfortunately, most of the Muslim countries may not like having such large audiences and large number of speakers coming. But there is good news for you, after six months, in January, that is in the last week of January, from the 24th, 25th, 26th for three days, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, 2025, we will be having not the same level of the peace conference what we used to have in, in Bombay, but we will be having the Perli Sunnah Convention.”

Who is Zakir Naik?

Zakir Naik is known for his controversial views and has faced legal challenges in India, including accusations of spreading hatred and money laundering. He fled to Malaysia in 2016 and has since remained a polarising figure. The 58-year-old preacher is expected to tour Pakistan with his son, Fariq Naik, as he delivers a series of lectures across the country.