ED arrests Zakir Naik's close aide; fresh chargesheet soon
New Delhi, Mar 22: The Enforcement Directorate Friday arrested a "trusted" aide of controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik from Mumbai in connection with a money laundering case against him and others, officials said.
Abdul Kadir Najmudin Sathak, a jeweller, has been arrested under the Prevention of Money Laundering (PMLA) for his role in "actively assisting Naik and aiding him in money laundering by transferring funds of dubious origin from the UAE to facilitate production and broadcasting incriminating videos for spreading communal hatred and radicalisation of a particular community", ED said.
He was sent to the ED custody till March 27 by a special PMLA court in Mumbai.
The agency will soon file a fresh charge sheet in this case based on fresh evidence, they said.
The officials alleged that Sathak, the second to be arrested in this case, had directly sent about Rs 50 crore funds to Naik, which the preacher illegally routed and laundered. Zakir's associate Aamir Gazdar was arrested by the agency in 2017.
Sathak was also the director of M/s Global Broadcasting Corporation FZE LLC that owned Naik's Peace TV channel, they said.
It said the company Global Broadcasting was "controlled" by Naik, who is stated to be in Malaysia at present, through Sathak, who was his "trusted aide".
"An amount of Rs 79 crore was received from GBC to Ms Harmony Media Pvt Ltd. But for these monies, it would not have been possible to produce these controversial speeches of Naik and reach wider audiences through Peace TV," the ED alleged.
It claimed that the source of funds remitted by GBC to Harmony Media is "suspicious" as there were no advertisements run on this channel and Sathak had not submitted any details in this context.
Naik has been under investigation since 2016, when the Centre banned his Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) for five years.
Indian security agencies have been monitoring him ever since allegations surfaced that he had inspired one of the militants involved in the Dhaka restaurant attack on July 1, 2016, which left 22 people dead.
Naik, wanted in India for terror-related activities and hate speech, reportedly left the country in 2016 and subsequently moved to largely Muslim populated Malaysia, where he was granted permanent residency.
The ED had registered a criminal case against Naik and others in December 2016 after taking cognisance of a National Investigation Agency (NIA) complaint filed under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).
The agency, which functions under the Union Finance Ministry, is looking into the charges of laundering of illegal funds in the case and the subsequent proceeds of crime thus generated.
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Pope Leo XIV rejects claims that God justifies war in Palm Sunday Mass message
Leaders on all sides of the Iran war have used religion to justify their actions; US officials, especially Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, have invoked their Christian faith to cast the war as a Christian nation trying to vanquish its foes with military might Pope Leo XIV on Sunday rejected claims that God justifies war and prayed especially for Christians in the Middle East during a Palm Sunday Mass before tens of thousands of people in St. Peter's Square.
With the US-Israeli war on Iran entering its second month and Russia's ongoing campaign in Ukraine, Leo dedicated his Palm Sunday homily to insisting that God is the "king of peace" who rejects violence and comforts those who are oppressed.
"Brothers and sisters, this is our God: Jesus, King of Peace, who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war," Leo said. "He does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them."
Leaders on all sides of the Iran war have used religion to justify their actions. US officials, especially Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, have invoked their Christian faith to cast the war as a Christian nation trying to vanquish its foes with military might.
Russia's Orthodox Church, too, has justified Russia's invasion of Ukraine as a "holy war" against a Western world it considers has fallen into evil.
Palm Sunday marks Jesus' triumphant entrance into Jerusalem in the time leading up to his crucifixion, which Christians observe on Good Friday, and resurrection on Easter Sunday.
In a special blessing at the end of Mass, Leo said he was praying especially for Christians in the Middle East who are "suffering the consequences of an atrocious conflict. In many cases, they cannot live the rites of these holy days."
Earlier Sunday, the Latin Patriarchate said Jerusalem police prevented the Catholic church's top leadership from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. It was the first time in centuries that church leaders were prevented from celebrating Palm Sunday at the place where Christians believe Jesus was crucified, the Patriarchate said.
Leo said that during Holy Week, Christians cannot forget how many people around the world are suffering as Christ did. "Their trials appeal to the conscience of all. Let us raise our prayers to the Prince of Peace so that he may support people wounded by war and open concrete paths of reconciliation and peace," Leo said.
A Holy Week that recalls Pope Francis' suffering
When Holy Week opened last year, Pope Francis was still recovering at the Vatican after a five-week hospital stay for double pneumonia. He had delegated the liturgical celebrations to others, but rallied on Easter Sunday to greet the faithful from the loggia of St. Peter's Square. Most poignantly, he then made what became his final popemobile loop around the piazza.
Francis died the following morning, Easter Monday, after suffering a stroke. His nurse, Massimiliano Strappetti, later told Vatican Media that Francis had told him: "Thank you for bringing me back to the square" for the final salute.
Leo is due to preside over this week's liturgical appointments and is returning to tradition with the Holy Thursday foot-washing ceremony that commemorates Jesus' Last Supper with his disciples.
During his 12-year pontificate, Francis famously celebrated the Holy Thursday ritual by travelling to Rome-area prisons and refugee centres to wash the feet of people on society's margins. His aim was to drive home the ritual's message of service and humility, and he would frequently muse during his Holy Thursday homilies, "Why them and not me?"
Francis' gesture had been praised as a tangible evidence of his belief that the church must go to the peripheries to find those most in need of God's love and mercy. But some critics bristled at the annual outings, especially since Francis would also wash the feet of Muslims and people of other faiths.
Leo restores Holy Week foot-washing tradition
Leo, history's first US-born pope, is returning the Holy Thursday foot-washing tradition to the basilica of St. John Lateran, where popes performed it for decades. The Vatican hasn't yet said who will participate, though Popes Benedict XVI and John Paul II normally washed the feet of 12 priests.
On Friday, Leo is due to preside over the Good Friday procession at Rome's Colosseum commemorating Christ's Passion and crucifixion. Saturday brings the late-night Easter Vigil, during which Leo will baptise new Catholics, followed a few hours later by Easter Sunday, when Christians commemorate the resurrection of Jesus.
Leo will celebrate Easter Sunday Mass in St. Peter's Square and then deliver his Easter blessing from the loggia of the basilica.
