New Delhi: Controversial televangelist Zakir Naik, who is now facing multiple probes in India over his role in spreading extremist ideas, wouldn’t have forgotten what it means to be on the bad books of Britain's new PM Theresa May.
Prior to replacing David Cameron at 10 Downing Street, Mrs May was the home secretary for over six years. During this period she had earned a formidable reputation of a tough taskmaster who never shied away from taking hard decisions.
One of her first decisions she took after taking over as home secretary in 2010 was to ban Zakir Naik from entering the United Kingdom.
Mrs May cancelled Naik's five-year UK visa hours before he was scheduled to take off from Mumbai. Naik was scheduled to hold his so-called 'peace conferences' in many places in the UK that year.
It was told to Naik that it has been decided to exclude him from the UK for engaging in unacceptable behaviour by making statements that attempt to justify terrorist activity and fostering hatred.
“I have excluded Dr Naik from the UK. Numerous comments made by Dr Naik are evidence to me of his unacceptable behaviour,” Mrs May had told The Daily Telegraph on 2010.
“Coming to the UK is a privilege, not a right and I am not willing to allow those who might not be conducive to the public good to enter the UK,” she said.
