Zakir Naik tried to cross over to Maldives but was not allowed

New Delhi, Dec 13: Controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik recently tried to cross over to Maldives from Malaysia but the island nation did not allow it, Maldives' Parliament Speaker Mohamed Nasheed said on Friday.

'He (Zakir Naik) was trying to come to Maldives but we did not allow him to come,' former president of Maldives Nasheed, who is leading a parliamentary delegation to India, said.

Asked if there had been discussions between Maldives and Malaysia on Naik's extradition, Nasheed said, 'He was not allowed to come to the Maldives recently so there would have been discussions (between Malaysia and Maldives)'.

India has been seeking extradition of Naik, a 53-year-old radical television preacher, who left India in 2016 and subsequently moved to Malaysia.

Naik was booked by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in 2016 based on an FIR, registered under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, by the National Investigation Agency.

The ED said Naik received funds worth crores of rupees in his and his trusts' bank accounts from unidentified 'well wishers' over the years for his speeches that spread 'hatred and incited Muslim youths' to take up terrorism.