ASEAN Beat | Diplomacy | Southeast Asia

Why Malaysia Won’t Extradite Dr. Zakir Naik to India

Despite being wanted on various criminal charges in India, the Islamic preacher has become hugely popular since arriving in Malaysia in 2016.

Dr. Zakir Naik, as seen in a screenshot of a video posted to his YouTube channel on Aug. 22, 2025.

The biggest viral video of the recently concluded BRICS Summit in New Delhi was not of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi shaking hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping, but of Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim singing a Hindi film song.

At a gala dinner during the summit, Anwar spotted a pianist in the hotel lobby and started singing Kishore Kumar’s evergreen “Khwaab Ho Tum Ya Koi Haqeeqat” from the 1965 Dev Anand film, “Teen Deviyan.” Indian movies are very popular in Malaysia, and Anwar must have grown up listening to Bollywood songs because he has sung this song many times on past visits to India.

But once the music stopped, Anwar returned to serious business, and one issue he must have been aware that every Indian journalist would ask him about was the extradition of Islamic preacher Dr. Zakir Naik.

Naik, who faces multiple criminal charges in India relating to hate speech, inciting terrorism, and money laundering, moved to Malaysia in 2016 and has remained there since. India formally sent an extradition request to Malaysia in January 2018. New Delhi has also sought an Interpol Red Notice for Naik’s arrest. Interpol declined India’s request citing that the request was premature because a formal charge sheet had not been filed at the time of the original application.

Anwar handled the issue with due maturity, given that the extradition of Naik is a deeply sensitive domestic political issue. He confirmed that the matter had been discussed with Modi but avoided making any commitment on handing Naik over. Malaysia, he said, had to proceed cautiously and respect the rule of law and the importance of bilateral relations.

India and Malaysia have an extradition treaty, signed in 2010, but Naik’s case is different. Malay Muslims constitute more than 70 percent of the country’s population, and no party can afford to offend them. And since arriving in Malaysia, Naik has become very popular among Malay Muslims. At times, many political parties, especially Barisan Nasional, have used the issue of Naik to shore up political support among hardline Muslims.

Naik claims he has been persecuted in India because of his faith and will never get a fair trial if he is extradited.

“No Malaysian government will extradite him as he has a large following among........

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