Malaysian Human Resource Minister M Kulasegaran said on Friday that he is prepared to meet controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik in court after the latter demanded an apology from the minister for making derogatory remarks towards him.
"Zakir Naik needs to know that there is no necessity to wait for a reply from me. He should advise his lawyers to file proceedings, if he is serious, as I am steadfast in fighting this matter, come what may," The New Straits Times quoted Kulasegaran as saying. "In short, my message to Zakir Naik is that I will see him in court!"
Kulasegaran had said that Naik intended to sow discord in Malaysia through his recent public remarks on Hindus and Chinese residing in Muslim-majority nation. The minister made clear that he will not apologise for his remarks.
In response to calls for his own deportation, Naik -- during a religious talk titled "Executive Talk Bersama Dr Zakir Naik" -- asked the Malaysian Chinese to "go back" first since they were "old guests" of the country.
His speech at the same venue was also condemned by many parties after he compared Hindus in Malaysia with Muslims in India, saying that the Hindus here enjoyed more than 100 per cent rights as compared to Muslims in India.