Zakir Naik Won't Be Deported, Says Malaysia
PUTRAJAYA, MALAYSIA: Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said on Friday that Zakir Naik wanted in India over allegations of terror-related activities and hate speech will not be sent back. His statement came a day after India confirmed that it had requested Malaysia to extradite Zakir Naik.
"As long as he is not creating any problem, we will not deport him because he has been given permanent residency status," Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said at a news conference in administrative capital Putrajaya outside Kuala Lumpur, when asked about the reports.
Zakir Naik, a radical television preacher, reportedly left India in 2016 and subsequently moved to largely Muslim Malaysia, where he was granted permanent residency.
The Foreign Ministry yesterday said that Malaysia was reviewing India's request to extradite him which New Delhi made in January for allegedly inciting youth to engage in terror activities via his hate speeches. The two countries have an extradition treaty.
"At this stage, our request is under active consideration of the Malaysian side. Our High Commission in Kuala Lumpur is in regular touch with the relevant Malaysian authorities in this regard," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said at a press briefing.
Zakir Naik, 52, has described the media reports as "totally baseless and false", adding that he has no plans to return to India until he felt "safe from unfair prosecution".
courtesy : ndtv.com
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11k litres of milk poured into Narmada river after religious event; environmentalists see red
Sehore (PTI): Around 11,000 litres of milk were poured into Narmada river, often called the lifeline of Madhya Pradesh, in Sehore district on the culmination of a 21-day religious event as part of a sanctification ritual, prompting environmentalists to flag its negative impact on the ecosystem.
The event concluded at Satdev village in Bherunda area, located about 90 km from the district headquarters, with a 'mahayagna' on Wednesday.
The milk was offered to the river as part of rituals and prayers for the purity of the waters, the well-being of pilgrims and prosperity, organisers said.
The milk was brought in tankers to the riverbank and later poured into the flowing water amid chanting of mantras in the presence of a crowd of devotees.
However, environmentalists raised concerns over the practice, warning of its potential ecological impact.
"Such large quantities of organic matter can deplete dissolved oxygen in water, adversely affecting the river ecosystem. These impact local communities dependent on the river for drinking water and threaten aquatic life as well as domestic animals," noted environmentalist and wildlife activist Ajay Dube said.
Religious offerings should be symbolic and mindful, he asserted.
Renowned environmentalist Subhash Pandey said 11,000 litres of milk acts as a significant organic pollutant.
"It is highly oxygen-demanding and can lead to oxygen depletion, aquatic mortality, eutrophication (process of plants growing on river surface) and loss of potability. These effects are predictable from dairy-effluent chemistry and have been documented in similar incidents worldwide," Pandey pointed out.
Narmada originates at Amarkantak in the state and traverses 1,312 km westward to Maharashtra and Gujarat, emptying into the Arabian Sea via the Gulf of Cambay.
It is the largest west-flowing river in the peninsula, passing through a rift valley, and acts as a crucial water source for irrigation in MP, Gujarat and Maharashtra.
