Zakir Naik's Peace TV and its videos are banned, but guess where they are made
Zakir Naik's now-infamous Peace TV has its offices in Dubai, Saudi Arabia, the USA and the UK, but none in India. Officially speaking.
However, India - more specifically, the tiny area of Dongri in South Mumbai - is actually where Naik's videos are made.
A bit of background: Naik's 'provocative' Peace TVspeeches and videos are said to have inspired some of the Bangladeshi terrorists, who killed 22 people, mostly foreigners, in the month of Ramzan at an upscale restaurant in Dhaka on 1 July.
However, India - more specifically, the tiny area of Dongri in South Mumbai - is actually where Naik's videos are made.
A bit of background: Naik's 'provocative' Peace TVspeeches and videos are said to have inspired some of the Bangladeshi terrorists, who killed 22 people, mostly foreigners, in the month of Ramzan at an upscale restaurant in Dhaka on 1 July.
For the past 11 years, Peace TV videos have been produced - if not made - in Dongri. The residents of the crowded Dongri area are predominantly members of the Muslim community. The production company that produces the videos is called Harmony Media Pvt Ltd and it is a medium-scale video and television production company that produces religious and educational videos to be telecast across various channels. Harmony Media came into existence in 2005. However, speaking with Firstpost, a source from Harmony Media clarified that they don't make videos just for Peace TV.
Naik, who was supposed to return to Mumbai from Saudi Arabia on Monday morning, has cancelled his return and may issue a clarification through video conferencing, police sources said. But, there's another twist in the tail. According to well-placed sources in the Mumbai Police, Naik may actually have gone to South Africa.
Naik, who was supposed to return to Mumbai from Saudi Arabia on Monday morning, has cancelled his return and may issue a clarification through video conferencing, police sources said. But, there's another twist in the tail. According to well-placed sources in the Mumbai Police, Naik may actually have gone to South Africa.
Dongri's Naju Building on Tandel Street (opposite the Dongri bus stop) is listed as Peace TV's programming office (photo seen here).
The third floor of the Naju Building is where the expensive machinery for production is housed. All of Naik's speeches are edited and produced in the studio on the third floor, where more than 50 video editors, supervisors, software engineers, IT experts and technical persons do round-the-clock work here, a senior police official told to media. The same Mumbai Police official helped identify the persons who constructed the studio for Harmony Media. It may be recalled that the Mumbai Police and Maharashtra ATS have been ordered by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to investigate Naik's speeches and possible terrorist links.
When We contacted Harmony Media, a person named Salim said the studio was going to be shut for a week. "Everyone is on leave," he added. He also said that the studio made videos for other channels apart from Peace TV.
Apart from being uploaded to YouTube, CDs carrying Naik's speeches are sent to Dubai, Saudi Arabia, the US and UK from this studio, sources confirmed. The Mumbai Police has appointed a special team to see whether the Peace TV programmes continue to be made in Urdu, Bangla and English after the ban in Bangladesh, an official said. The police is also investigating the uploads of various local cable TV providers to locate the main commercial source for Peace TV.
Senior police officials are also looking into the funding Naik is receiving from abroad forPeace TV. The Naik-run Islamic Research Centre and Mazgaon Islamic International School are also on the radar of the Mumbai Police.
While Naik has dismissed the allegations against him, the Shiv Sena believes he must be arrested the moment he returns to India and his Peace TV network be dismantled.
"Peace TV is in reality 'Preach TV'. The Narendra Modi government at the Centre and the Devendra Fadnavis government in Maharashtra should show some courage and destroy all machinery of this channel," the Shiv Sena demanded in Saamana, its mouthpiece.
"The government can bring back black money when it wants to, but for now, the government should immediately destroy the financiers of Naik because the game he is playing will destroy our nation. Arrest him as soon as he returns to the country," the saffron party demanded.
Senior police officials are also looking into the funding Naik is receiving from abroad forPeace TV. The Naik-run Islamic Research Centre and Mazgaon Islamic International School are also on the radar of the Mumbai Police.
While Naik has dismissed the allegations against him, the Shiv Sena believes he must be arrested the moment he returns to India and his Peace TV network be dismantled.
"Peace TV is in reality 'Preach TV'. The Narendra Modi government at the Centre and the Devendra Fadnavis government in Maharashtra should show some courage and destroy all machinery of this channel," the Shiv Sena demanded in Saamana, its mouthpiece.
"The government can bring back black money when it wants to, but for now, the government should immediately destroy the financiers of Naik because the game he is playing will destroy our nation. Arrest him as soon as he returns to the country," the saffron party demanded.
